They say expectations can often be a burden for a professional athlete. Well, the Chicago Bears wide receivers won’t have to worry about that in 2022. It isn’t a secret most of the national experts aren’t high on the ground GM Ryan Poles assembled this offseason. Pro Football Focus took it a step further. Based on their grading system and evaluations, the Bears undeniably have the worst receiving corps in the NFL.
Unsurprisingly, this pessimism stems from the lack of significant investments made in the group between free agency and the draft. The Jacksonville Jaguars spent massive money on guys like Christian Kirk and Zay Jones. Miami traded for Tyreek Hill. Even the New England Patriots traded for DeVante Parker and drafted Tyreek Thornton in the 2nd round. Meanwhile, the Bears added Byron Pringle on a one-year deal and grabbed Velus Jones in the 3rd round.
“It’s not difficult to see what new general manager Ryan Poles’ strategy is. He wants to build the “right way,” and that means not overspending in free agency or reaching in the draft. The unfortunate side effect of that plan this offseason is that Justin Fields is in the midst of one of the worst offensive situations in the NFL entering a pivotal second season.
Darnell Mooney is the lone established option in the receiving corps after earning a 74.9 PFF receiving grade in his second season out of Tulane. He’s still better suited as a No. 2, which is a title currently held by free agent acquisition Byron Pringle. Leaning heavily on Pringle, Tajae Sharpe, Velus Jones Jr. and Equanimeous St. Brown isn’t where you want to be as an offense.”
0 to 💯 real quick pic.twitter.com/rm0Mv4Sj9V
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) June 9, 2022
Chicago Bears are banking on potential and scheme.
Poles expressed belief in both Pringle and Jones as pure talents. Pringle was productive in Kansas City (over 500 yards and 5 TDs) despite being the #4 option in the Chiefs’ passing attack behind Hill, Travis Kelce, and Mecole Hardman. Jones showed significant growth his final year at Tennessee, looked great at the Senior Bowl, and ran a blistering 4.31 at the scouting combine. One cannot teach that level of speed. It feels like people are overlooking their actual skills due to their humble origins.
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Then there is the Chicago Bears’ new offensive scheme being installed by coordinator Luke Getsy. It is a variation of the famed Shanahan wide-zone system that is finding great success in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Green Bay. It is proven over many years of working to the strengths of its players, particularly the wide receivers. With a mixture of play action and creative scheming, this group should have no problem finding space to work with.
It won’t be a top 10 unit, but the worst in the NFL might be pushing it. Compared to what the Bears had in 2017 with Kendall Wright, Josh Bellamy, and Dontrelle Inman? This group is far superior.
What theses “experts” keep neglecting, or just plain fail to see, is that Poles was left with a dumpster fire of draft picks, cap space, contract dystopia, and general low morale. You can’t restore a disaster over night. Lower your expectations. Give it a chance and see what happens next year.