Analyst Reveals An Exciting Cole Kmet Development

The Chicago Bears had their best offensive performance of 2022 on Sunday in Minnesota. Much of that came through the air, which was an unexpected surprise. Justin Fields got most of the attention thanks to his excellent completion percentage and 118 passer rating. Rightfully so. He was the best player on the field for Chicago. However, he did get some help. Darnell Mooney had that fantastic catch late in the first half. David Montgomery had 62 yards receiving. Yet nobody noticed how valuable Cole Kmet was.

The big tight end was invisible through his first two weeks, failing to make a single catch against San Francisco and Green Bay. However, it appears things have changed recently. The tight end has 101 yards across the past three games while catching nine of the ten passes thrown his way. Former Bear Tom Thayer reviewed the Vikings film. He came away impressed with how strong the connection between Kmet and his quarterback has become.

Cole Kmet finally seems comfortable.

Learning a new offense is difficult. That is true for every position, not just quarterbacks. The responsibilities asked of a tight end in Luke Getsy’s new scheme are significantly different from Matt Nagy’s. As a result, Kmet seemed out of sorts during the entire month of September. Sunday in Minnesota felt like the first proper moment where the third-year tight end knew and executed his responsibilities well. Every time Fields needed a big conversion, it was often Kmet he’d look for.

Nobody is saying the guy will suddenly transform into Travis Kelce. That is never happening. Still, Cole Kmet is looking more and more like the solid player he was towards the end of last season: a solid combo player that can block and catch passes. At his current pace, he should finish with around 500 yards. That isn’t terrible for a tight end. The challenging part for the Bears is getting him into the end. Kmet hasn’t scored a touchdown since 2020. That can’t continue.