Chicago Bears Offseason Progress Report

Can Ben Johnson save this team and revive Caleb Williams?

Bears Head Coach Ben Johnson

Overview

2024 Record: 5-12

General Manager: Ryan Poles

Head Coach: Ben Johnson

Starting Quarterback: Caleb Williams

Key Extensions:

LB TJ Edwards (2 years, $20 million, $19.5 million guaranteed)

Key Additions:

iOL Jonah Jackson, iOL Joe Thuney, iOL Drew Dalman, DL Grady Jarrett, WR Devin Duvernay, EDGE Dayo Odeyingbo, WR Olamide Zaccheaus, QB Case Keenum, TE Colston Loveland, WR Luther Burden III, OT Ozzy Trapilo

Key Departures:

WR Keenan Allen, EDGE Darrell Taylor

Offense

Offensive Coordinator: Declan Doyle (Ben Johnson calls plays)

2024 Ranks:

EPA/play: 26th Success Rate: 30th PPG: 28th (18.2ppg)

Projected Starting Offense (11 personnel):

QB Caleb Williams

RB D’Andre Swift

WR DJ Moore

WR Rome Odunze

WR Olamide Zaccheaus

TE Colston Loveland

LT Braxton Jones

LG Joe Thuney

C Drew Dalman

RG Jonah Jackson

RT Darnell Wright

Offense Notes:

When the Bears finally obtained all of the rewards of the Bryce Young trade (DJ Moore, Caleb Williams, etc.), the expectation was that Williams would hit the ground running, living up to his generational billing. The reality, however, was anything but generational offense. Williams struggled with NFL speed and being decisive; the offensive line was consistently under duress, and the receivers were never on the same page as the quarterback.

To remedy this, the Bears have completely overhauled their offense. Multiple new offensive linemen have been acquired, and new weapons have been added, including the tenth overall pick. The most important addition is new Head Coach Ben Johnson, who’s been one of the most innovative play designers on that side of the ball. With a bit more creativity and discipline in the coaching room, hopefully, the Bears offense can be as potent in reality as it is talented on paper.

Defense

Defensive Coordinator: Dennis Allen

2024 Ranks:

EPA/play: 15th Success Rate: 18th PPG: 13th (21.8ppg allowed)

Projected Starting Defense (Base 4-2):

DE Montez Sweat

DT Gervon Dexter Sr.

DT Grady Jarrett

DE Dayo Odeyingbo

LB TJ Edwards

LB Tremaine Edmunds

CB Tyrique Stevenson

CB Jaylon Johnson

NB Kyler Gordon

S Jaquan Brisker

S Kevin Byard III

Defense Notes:

With the surge in defensive performance in the second half of 2023, finishing middle of the pack in 2024 seems a bit disappointing. There were bright sides, including being top ten in takeaways, red zone defense, and 4th down defense, all of which helped keep the team in games. Stopping the run was the main issue for this unit, giving up just under five yards per attempt.

Just as the team addressed the offensive line, the defensive front was hammered in free agency, adding Grady Jarrett and Dayo Odeyingbo. With those two being the main additions to this unit, I expect that we’ll largely see most of the same group running it back. With veteran Dennis Allen calling the defense this season, hopefully, this group will be able to provide better output when it comes to stopping the run.

Outlook

Overall, the Bears are in an interesting place. With a brand new coaching staff, the thought is that the team should be more competitive. Ironically, their trajectory for Caleb Williams’ second season might mirror that of Bryce Young’s second season - a notable improvement in wins.

The problem with this proposition, however, is the division that the Bears play in. Last season, every non-Bears NFC North team made the playoffs, and if you read the Offseason Progress Reports for those teams, I don’t expect any of them to regress by a wide margin. If the Bears want to make the playoffs, is there any room for them with the rest of the contenders in the division?

With that in mind, I think that a strong playoff berth shouldn’t be the expectation for this team. They certainly have the talent to be a good team deep into the year, but playoff spots are limited. The goal for this season should be getting Caleb Williams to look more comfortable in a (hopefully) better system. If Williams can take significant steps in his development this season, Bears fans can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that they may have their first franchise quarterback since…

Expectation/Goal for 2025: Caleb Williams takes a big step, make noise within the division

2025 Schedule

\(\begin{array}{c c} \textbf{GameWeek} & \textbf{Opponent} \\ \hline \textbf{Week 1} & \textbf{vs. Minnesota, MNF, 8:15pm} \\ \text{Week 2} & \text{@ Detroit, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 3} & \text{vs. Dallas, 4:25pm} \\ \text{Week 4} & \text{@ Las Vegas, 4:25pm} \\ \text{Week 5} & \text{-- BYE WEEK --} \\ \textbf{Week 6} & \textbf{@ Washington, MNF, 8:15pm} \\ \text{Week 7} & \text{vs. New Orleans, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 8} & \text{@ Baltimore, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 9} & \text{@ Cincinnati, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 10} & \text{vs. New York Giants, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 11} & \text{@ Minnesota, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 12} & \text{vs. Pittsburgh, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 13} & \text{@ Philadelphia, FNF, 3pm*} \\ \text{Week 14} & \text{@ Green Bay, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 15} & \text{vs. Cleveland, 1pm} \\ \text{Week 16} & \text{vs. Green Bay, TBD} \\ \textbf{Week 17} & \textbf{@ San Francisco, SNF, 8:20pm} \\ \text{Week 18} & \text{vs. Detroit, TBD} \\ \end{array} \)

Primetime games are BOLDED, all times EDT/EST

*Week 13 game vs. Philadelphia is on Black Friday*