Hello everyone, and welcome to the long-awaited team preview series! I will be going team by team, breaking down all 32 teams ahead of the start of the 2024 season. This will be my second year doing this, and I couldn’t be more excited to bring some new features to the series over on my Instagram @KwonScouting, including a second slide with some team superlatives and one season-long pick ’em square that I like for each team. Without further ado, let’s get into the breakdown. I hope everyone enjoys this series! Football is just right around the corner!

Quarterback

The Chicago Bears enter year one in the Caleb Williams era, and that comes with a lot of expectations. This team didn’t have a ton of coaching overhaul, but they did bring in Shane Waldron to replace Luke Getsy at offensive coordinator, which is an interesting move to say the least. Shane Waldron had a pretty rough go as Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator in 2023. He did an extremely poor job in utilizing 2022 first-round pick Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the offense, and when I watched Seattle for this series, I thought they lacked rhythm and consistency.

I don’t mind giving Waldron another chance in Chicago, as he had a tough go in Seattle with the consistent offensive line injuries. Working with Caleb Williams, a blue-chip prospect and one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in recent memory, can certainly help Waldron find success. I’m optimistic about Williams’ chances to have a big year one in Chicago with his new weapons. The ceiling on Caleb Williams is incredibly high, and I like his chances of tapping into it in year one.

Pass Catchers

The Bears did a great job of not making the same mistake twice and surrounding their new franchise guy with elite weapons this time around. DJ Moore lacks elite-level production, but I love his chances of having a massive season with Caleb Williams. Keenan Allen is an extremely reliable short-to-intermediate threat, even at his age. I have some questions about his ability to play at an extremely high level, especially with his injuries, which is why I like his season-long under a lot, but I’m confident in the fact that he will continue to be a reliable target for Caleb Williams.

Rome Odunze was one of my all-time favorite prospects to watch; just an incredibly fluid player and a premium insurance that even if Keenan Allen goes down, you will have another threat on the field at all times. The depth behind the top three isn’t great, including two laughable picks in Tyler Scott and Velus Jones, but they have a strong tight end room as a solid insurance policy.

 Cole Kmet is a very solid starting tight end. He’s not going to blow you away, but he has good hands, is solid after the catch, and is a competitive blocker. New signing Gerald Everett brings some explosiveness behind him and is a nice weapon to have in 12 personnel sets.

Running Backs

I’ve never been a big D’Andre Swift fan, and signing him to be their lead back is probably my least favorite move they made this offseason, especially when you have two talented guys that I like behind him in Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson. I fear the Bears definitely fell into the same trap the Panthers did last year in signing a bad running back coming off of a career year in an extremely running-back-friendly system.

There is no doubt that Swift can be a good third-down back for this team, but he has far too many frustrating reps on early downs to be considered good in my eyes. I actually think Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson are both better than Swift is at this current state, and I’m not quite sure what the plan is for both of them on this roster. It certainly feels like Herbert is the odd man out, and Roschon is the thunder to D’Andre Swift’s lightning, which I still think can make for a successful running back room.

Offensive Line

The offensive line is fine, which is certainly better than what it has been the past few years. Braxton Jones at left tackle is one of the more underrated tackles in the league; he is quite good. Tevin Jenkins at left guard is a monster when healthy, which has been an issue for him. Last year’s first-round pick, Darnell Wright, had a strong rookie campaign, and while I wasn’t a huge fan of the pick at the time, he proved to be this team’s long-term starter at the position.

Nate Davis had a disastrous first year after getting paid by the Bears, and I don’t think he is a lock to start this year just because of how bad he was in pass protection in 2023, but we’ll see if he can rebound back to close to what he was in Tennessee. Ryan Bates is a fine starting interior player, has some positional flexibility, and is an upgrade from what they had in years past. Coleman Shelton is someone who could be a surprise starter and probably will find himself playing a good bit this year; he is okay.

Defensive Line

The defensive line… oh, the defensive line. I really don’t know how this group functioned before Montez Sweat. It’s still laughable to me that people think that was a bad trade for the Bears. Sweat is far and away the best player in this group, and he really has no help. Demarcus Walker is a rotational piece thrust into the EDGE2 spot on this team. He actually had a solid year in 2023, but he is just more of a third-pass rusher, and they are asking him to be a true starter. Jacob Martin was a good signing and can come in and provide some pass-rush juice off the edge.

Austin Booker was their lone draft pick at the position, but a guy I really like and think could come in and make an immediate impact for this team. The interior is also quite bad; this team really needs Gervon Dexter to make a big jump, and he is one of the few players in this group with actual upside. He was a raw piece coming out and showed some flashes in his rookie year, but he’s under a lot of pressure to make a big impact this year.

Andrew Billings is a fine rotational player thrust into a starting role on this defensive line. He will be in a rotation with Zacch Pickens, who was a guy I liked coming out but hasn’t made much of an impact thus far. The depth behind them is very poor.

Linebackers

Their linebacker room is much better. TJ Edwards is extremely underrated and a borderline elite player. Tremaine Edmunds is a good second guy, still pretty overrated, but he has had good stretches of play. He is more of an athlete than a true linebacker still. Jack Sanborn gives them really good depth at the position and is extremely good on early downs, and would probably be a starter on a good bit of teams.

Secondary

The secondary is a really good unit as well. Jaylon Johnson got the payday that he certainly deserved; he’s firmly a top-10 corner and is super smart and physical. Tyrique Stevenson had a great rookie year and proved to be the boundary corner opposite Johnson. He’s my pick for breakout of the year for this team, and I think he and Jaylon Johnson could prove to be one of the better up-and-coming duos. Kyler Gordon is a good slot corner as well, a very reliable coverage player.

Terrell Smith is a fun option at CB4 and gives them good depth at the position. Kevin Byard certainly showed signs of regression as a playmaker and a top safety in the league, but he should be a more consistent option at the position, even at his age. Jaquan Brisker has settled in as a good player on the back end for this team and pairs nicely with Byard. Very good run defender and certainly a starting caliber player.

Conclusion

It’s pretty evident to me that the Chicago Bears are headed in the right direction. They have built a very strong group of weapons for the new face of the franchise, Caleb Williams, and a secondary and linebacker group that is among the best in the league. Now, I do think they are probably closer to two years away from being true playoff threats.

Would it shock me if they snuck into a wildcard spot or even won the division? Not really, but I don’t think they have the strength in the trenches to truly dominate. However, give them another year to continue building up the offensive and defensive line, and I think the Chicago Bears have a really strong future.

Record Prediction

9-8