GM Ryan Poles said it will be much harder for players to make the Chicago Bears roster this year. He wasn’t lying. For the first time in at least seven years, the team has proven talent across the board. Every position has at least one above-average player, and several of them have solid depth. This will make those final two or three spots at the bottom of each depth chart that much more precious. Most projections fall along the same lines when considering the starting lineup.
Caleb Williams is the quarterback. D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen are the top receivers. Cole Kmet is the tight end. D’Andre Swift is the running back. Jaylon Johnson, Tyrique Stevenson, Kyler Gordon, Jaquan Brisker, and Kevin Byard make up the secondary. There isn’t much of a debate out there. However, it appears there could be some controversy on the horizon. At least NFL.com analyst Gregg Rosenthal thinks so. He ran his starting lineup projections for this coming season, featuring two notable shockers.
That would be a notable shift for the Chicago Bears.
Let’s start with center. Coleman Shelton was the starter last season for the Los Angeles Rams during their playoff run. Under normal circumstances, he would be the choice for the Bears. There’s one issue. Poles traded a 5th round pick to Buffalo for Ryan Bates. All indications to this point suggest he is the early favorite for that center spot. This prediction suggests he won’t acclimate to it well enough, allowing Shelton to secure the job. Yet somehow, defensive tackle is the bigger surprise.
Andrew Billings was outstanding at nose tackle last season. He was a key reason the Chicago Bears’ run defense was among the NFL’s best. This would suggest Zacch Pickens either beats him out for the job or the coaches plan on shifting Gervon Dexter to nose tackle, slotting Pickens into the three-technique role. This feels unlikely after how Billings played last season. So either the second-year defensive tackle has to perform lights out in training camp, or Billings has to get hurt.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
A lot of people thought Zacch Pickens was a major talent before he was drafted. He didn’t seem to develop at all last year, but that might not be the kid, but the coaching.
Maybe Washington can make a difference for him? It happens every year in the NFL, guys who get new coaches suddenly have the light go on. Why not here?
Bears were #1 vs run last year because Billings was an immovable force at NT. Also, because the pass rush was so weak, the pass defense was in the bottom 5. Unless Billings shows up out of shape, he’s still the beast you want clogging up the middle.
I agree that Davis should be replaced. He hasn’t been motivated to play and underperformed when he was on the field. But who will challenge him? Bears won’t have a replacement until 2024 NFL Draft.
I would think Davis would be on that list, he should be. Hasn’t played up to his contract at all and that’s when he does play. Usually when I say something like this, I end up eating crow. But that would be good.
Eh, it’s just one guy reading tea leaves. He might be right, but I don’t put much into what he’s saying right now. Heck, maybe he just flat out forgot about Billings.
Strange player projections.