Despite improving their record by two games since the 2023 (3-14) season, the Chicago Bears still face a number of unresolved issues. While fans hoped QB Caleb Williams would bring Chicago a winning record, the Bears still sit four games away from that milestone—ending last season at 5-12. As the NFL season begins to ramp up once again, it’s important to understand how the team has changed–and how it hasn’t–as the Bears chase an elusive playoff berth once again.
This offseason, the program made some big changes; both on and off the field.
Starting with the draft, the Bears took Colston Loveland (tight end, Michigan) in the first round and Luther Burden III (wide receiver, Missouri) in the second, helping to build an offensive profile. The Bears used their later picks to address a big concern from fans, filling gaps in last season’s crumbling O-line.
However, arguably the most important change to players and fans was the changes higher up the organization.
Back in January, the Bears hired former Detroit Lions Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson as head coach. Following a lackluster offensive performance last season, management is hoping that Johnson’s offensive play calling expertise will help the new talent get off to a running start. General Manager Ryan Poles justified his choice by highlighting Johnson’s offensive philosophy, saying “a progressive offensive mind, Ben’s plan for all three phases of our team, which is centered on creating a winning and competitive environment, became evidently clear”. Johnson, serving as OC under Detroit Head Coach Dan Campbell, led the Lions to their first playoff win in decades and the top seed in last year’s NFC playoffs.
Whether he can replicate that offensive masterclass in Chicago is yet to be seen, but fans are optimistic that a new perspective could be just what the team needs as they move into training camp.
Not far from our very own HPHS, training camp took place at the PNC Center at Halas Hall in Lake Forest, where fans gathered to watch this fresh team have its very first practices together. Despite many new pickups this offseason, the buzz during camp has been centered around the Bears 2024 number one draft pick Caleb Williams. Williams had an uneven start to these training sessions, having some expected bad days amongst the good. Yet Johnson remains unbothered stating, “anytime you’re a young player, there’s usually a couple of steps forward and one step back. And that’s really been the story of this training camp”.
If Williams thought eyes were on him during camp, he was in for a big surprise as the Bears took on the Buffalo Bills under the big lights in his preseason debut. Soldier Field’s stands were packed with fans anxiously awaiting the young quarterbacks’ response to all the questions on his legitimacy as a franchise quarterback.
After taking the field, Williams never looked back: going 60% and 107 yards in only the first half, leading to a Bears blowout win against the defending AFC East champs. The energy at Soldier Field was electric, with Shoreline’s own Editor-in-Chief Emma Shiner, there cheering them on as they scored a whopping 38 points and held the Bills to zero. It is clear that Johnson has been leading the team both physically and mentally; with their performance Sunday night indicating that team chemistry has been building this offseason, which was refreshing to see from a fan’s perspective.
As the season ramps up, the Bears are in a position to claw back a winning record, and their fans trust in the franchise as a whole. Whether they can capitalize on that opportunity is yet to be seen, as Chicago kicks off the regular season at home against the Vikings on September 8.