The Chicago Bears created absolute magic in 2025. After what felt like a rock bottom season the year before, new head coach Ben Johnson fostered a new team culture of defiant resilience that saw them overcome a 0-2 start to finish 11-6, winning the NFC North division for the first time in seven years. They celebrated with a win over the Green Bay Packers on wild card weekend, avenging their NFC Championship loss from 15 years ago. People suddenly began believing that this team could challenge the big dogs in the conference.

One would think this success would earn them a little credibility going into the 2026 season. They still have Johnson as head coach, one of the best offensive minds in football. Caleb Williams is coming off a breakout season. It is arguably the best coach-quarterback combo in the division. Apparently, that isn’t enough for betting oddsmakers. Not only are the Bears not the current favorite to win the NFC North this season, but they aren’t even projected to finish second. Those honors go to the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers, respectively.

The disrespect to the Chicago Bears doesn’t get much clearer.

Let’s break this down. The Lions are expected to win the division again. This confidence likely comes from two sources. First, they won back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024. Most of the roster that accomplished that remains intact. Second, Detroit swept the Bears in their season series last year. Both fair arguments. However, they aren’t adding important context. The Lions have taken two massive hits to their offensive line with Frank Ragnow retiring and Taylor Decker leaving. Two cornerstones gone. Their defense still isn’t very good, which puts pressure on the offense to carry the load. They just replaced their offensive coordinator again, hiring Drew Petzing, who had a forgettable three-year run in Arizona.

Then you have the Packers. They, too, are favored to finish ahead of the Chicago Bears. Why? That is a fair question. It’s not like the team visibly improved much during the offseason. They lost one key wide receiver to free agency (Romeo Dobbs) and traded another (Dontayvion Wicks). Two starting offensive linemen, Elgton Jenkins and Rasheed Walker, also departed. Micah Parsons likely won’t be back until midseason, which leaves their pass rush in uncertain territory. Oh, and the Bears beat them twice last season. So how?

There is one theory.

Two key factors were crucial to Chicago’s division title run last season. One was leading the NFL in takeaways with 33. The other was six 4th quarter comebacks led by Williams and the offense. Both are highly variable stat lines that analysts believe are unsustainable from year to year. Presuming each takes a noticeable dip this season, it is reasonable to believe the Bears won’t be as good. This will enable Detroit and Green Bay, two “superior” teams, to reassert control.

Logical? Perhaps. Disrespectful? Certainly. People are acting like what the Bears accomplished last season was a one-off. A thrilling one-off, sure, but still a one-off. They haven’t had back-to-back winning seasons as a franchise in 20 years. Though they do have a head coach and quarterback now, many still believe the roster is too flawed to break that streak just yet. If nothing else, Chicago won’t have to look far for motivation.

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams had a decent rookie season in 2024, all things considered. Despite horrendous coaching and bad offensive line play, he still finished with over 3500 passing yards with 20 touchdowns and six interceptions. Unfortunately, there was a lot of bad buried beneath that stat line. Many focused on his ugly sack rate, getting dropped 68 times, thanks in large part to his bad tendency to hold the ball. That is, without mentioning his poor footwork and over-reliance on scrambling. Yet the biggest and most puzzling issue was something else.

His deep ball.

Williams came into the NFL with one of the strongest arms seen since Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. His accuracy in college had always indicated he could strike down the field with success. Such was not the case in 2024. He missed guys way too often, failing to capitalize on opportunities. Many worried this was a trend he might not be able to reverse. Looking back at his 2025 season, Williams not only stopped the bleeding but also significantly improved throwing down the field.

Caleb Williams deserves credit for this.

Part of it was the situation around him. Head coach Ben Johnson did a terrific job cleaning up the offense, installing a system that took pressure off the quarterback. More running the ball. More play action. However, the quarterback dedicated himself to improving his mechanics, learning the necessary fundamentals for deep accuracy. As the video above shows, he used a throwing net meant to constantly test himself with long throws. Once he developed a feel for it, he often carried that over to practice with his receivers.

It also helped that the Bears added weapons capable of making the vertical game more accessible. That wasn’t really the case with Rome Odunze and D.J. Moore in 2024. Once Luther Burden came on board, things began to change. His speed forced defenses to soften their coverages, opening up those windows. Colston Loveland did much the same at tight end, presenting more of a downfield threat than Cole Kmet ever could. Still, much of the credit goes to Williams for hitting his targets more often.

Mind you, it should’ve been even better. Seven passes of 20 yards or more from him last season were dropped.

One must not underestimate the importance of this.

Think about this stat. In 2025, six of the seven quarterbacks who completed at least 40% of their deep passes made the playoffs. The year before, it was eight of the 13. In 2023, it was seven of 12. There is a strong correlation between a quarterback who can hit the long ball with decent regularity and winning football games. Four of the last five Super Bowl winners checked that box. It is a big deal that Caleb Williams has put himself in the discussion. It makes Chicago much more dangerous.

What’s scary is that the Bears are even more equipped to take advantage this season. While they lost Moore to a trade, they added Kalif Raymond and Zavion Thomas at wide receiver. Both are legitimate speed threats who will stretch the field more than ever. If the offensive line continues to hold up well, Williams could hit more deep shots than last year, which is terrifying to think about. Defenses will have no choice but to play deep coverage, and that only benefits Johnson’s ground attack.

The Philadelphia Eagles have been masters of roster-building for well over a decade. That is thanks largely to the efforts of general manager Howie Roseman, who likely has a spot in the Hall of Fame waiting for him. One of his most controversial moves in recent years was taking Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter in the 1st round three years ago. At the time, Carter was beset by multiple off-the-field concerns, including a hit-and-run incident that saw a fatality. Couple that with ongoing concerns about maturity issues, and it was a significant gamble taking him.

Fortunately, Philadelphia had a veteran locker room and a quality defensive coordinator (Vic Fangio) who could make it work. Carter became a key piece on their 2024 Super Bowl championship team. However, it appears things have shifted since then. The Eagles recently extended defensive tackle Jordan Davis with a massive contract. Now, some wonder if the team is willing to do the same for Carter, who has been subject to several trade rumors since March. One of them includes the Chicago Bears.

“In order to stay ahead of teams like the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers, though, Chicago needs to ensure it has as much talent as possible on its roster. One area where the Bears could use some help is at defensive tackle, so let’s take a look at a blockbuster trade pitch that would see the team acquire Jalen Carter from the Philadelphia Eagles.

Bears receive: DT Jalen Carter
Eagles receive: 2026 first-round pick (No. 25) and 2026 fourth-round pick (No. 129)“

Nothing has changed on the Jalen Carter front.

Is he still a ridiculously talented player capable of streaks of dominance? Yes. The thing is that it was also true at Georgia. Everybody remembers the setup during the 2023 draft. Chicago had traded down from #1 overall to collect a massive bounty of picks. When they went on the clock at #9, Carter was still there. They needed defensive tackle help. It felt like a perfect fit. Instead, the Bears swapped spots with Philadelphia at #10, who took him instead. Chicago went with Tennessee right tackle Darnell Wright.

Nothing has changed. The Bears do still have lingering concerns at defensive tackle. Carter is available, if you believe the rumors. Here’s the thing. Why would they pull the trigger now compared to back then? The defensive tackle is older than before, will require significant compensation to acquire, and needs a major contract extension. This overlooks the fact that he’s still been a headcase at times during his Eagles tenure. If the Bears weren’t willing before, why would they be now?

The Bears have no regrets about their decision.

Yes, Jalen Carter has enjoyed career success since being drafted. That was always a strong possibility given his immense talent. Even so, nothing about the past three years suggests the Bears have regrets about how they handled that situation. They got an extra draft pick out of the deal and still ended up with an All-Pro tackle to protect their young quarterback. This was a clear case of both teams winning a trade. Philadelphia got a key defensive piece to help their Super Bowl chase, while Chicago got a vital building block for their young roster.

The Carter chatter is still alive because some fans can’t let it go. They still feel the Bears should’ve drafted him and cling to the dream that the team can still somehow make it happen. Sadly, that ship has sailed. Chicago is content with their original decision and has no reason to go back on it. Carter will either stay in Philadelphia or get traded to a team that is willing to risk handing him millions of dollars. Just stop expecting the Bears to somehow have a change of heart.

The Chicago Bears stepped away from Halas Hall for the next few weeks for summer break. Coaches will make final preparations for training camp. Players will rest their minds and prepare their bodies for the grind to come. There is much work to do if this team wants to build on what it accomplished last season. Part of that could involve one more roster move before camp proper begins. If you polled most Bears fans on what position they hope to see addressed, they would say pass rusher. That is where Joey Bosa comes in.

A former Pro Bowl star for the Chargers, the defensive end spent last season with the Buffalo Bills, helping them reach the divisional round of the playoffs. Now he is a free agent. No team has brought him aboard yet. Some wondered if he might try to join his brother Nick in San Francisco, but that never materialized. ESPN has stepped in, urging the Bears to make the call. While he isn’t the player he was several years ago, he still gives them such depth and insurance at a premium position.

Sign edge rusher Joey Bosa

You’re going to notice a trend in the NFC North, where all four teams could probably use another veteran pass rusher. The Bears got 4.5 sacks out of Austin Booker in 10 games last season, but Dayo Odeyingbo was disappointing with just a single sack in eight games after signing a big contract to come over from Indianapolis.

Bosa had a 12.2% pass rush win rate last season, 26th among qualifying edge rushers, to go along with five sacks for Buffalo. He has played most of his career with his hand on the ground, so he’s probably the best fit for Chicago’s 4-3 base out of the top three available veteran pass rushers.

It’s hard to justify this move.

Bosa was a great player at one point in his career. Probably one of the four or five most dominant pass rushers in the league. Unfortunately, age and injuries have sapped his once dynamic ability. He’s not as explosive as he once was. While still crafty with his moves and plenty strong, it was evident he couldn’t win as often as he used to. If the Bears were to sign him, it would be as a rotational backup behind Montez Sweat and Austin Booker. Would he accept that? Probably not.

Besides, the Bears won’t want to pay his fee. Veteran pass rushers, even those past their prime, can still cost a decent amount of money. Buffalo gave him $12.6 million last season. Chicago doesn’t have anywhere near the cap space to offer something like that. They’d have to restructure other contracts to make it work. Bosa isn’t a good enough player at this stage to justify it.

Ask the simple question. Does signing Joey Bosa make the Bears Super Bowl favorites? If the answer is no (and it is), then this move isn’t worth it.

Price point will determine this.

If Bosa aims for another nice payday like last year, he won’t find it from Chicago. On the other hand, if he’s just interested in playing and will lower the amount to something reasonable, it might be worth it. Even in his current form, Bosa can be a solid third rusher behind Sweat and Booker. He could also help Shemar Turner continue developing once he returns from his knee injury. Outside of that scenario, the Bears are likely to maintain the status quo at edge rusher for this season.

Maybe they decide to get aggressive at the trade deadline if they’re playing well. Otherwise, they may content themselves with a minor move to add some depth. Somebody who won’t cost anything close to what Joey Bosa would. The unfortunate truth is the team is past the point where they can think about a big name on the free agent market. Cam Jordan was probably the last one who would’ve made sense. Now he’s going back to New Orleans. Chicago will sink or swim with who they have.

The Chicago Bears stadium saga has fallen silent again. Everybody knows that won’t last long. Affairs remain deadlocked. Illinois has a preferred site, Arlington Heights, that the team officially owns. Unfortunately, they don’t have the legislation necessary to start building. Conversely, Indiana has already provided the legislation to build there, but both potential sites under consideration face significant roadblocks. Namely, environmental protection that would require costly legal battles to overturn.

This deadlock means it will be some time before a possible resolution is found. Either Indiana finds a way to bypass the environmental issues, or Illinois finally pushes through a bill that gives the Bears the tax certainty they need. That said, other parties have begun surfacing with potential solutions to the problem. One of the most recent comes from Mayor Terrance Carr of McCook, Illinois. He believes his town has a potential stadium location that could interest the Bears, according to Steve Metsch of the Des Plaines Valley News.

The proposed site is at the southeast corner of 55th Street and East Avenue, filled in quarry land. Vulcan owns the 150 acres and has listed the land for sale, Carr said.

“Vulcan has some concerns, which I get. But they’re willing to sell,” said Carr, who has talked with Vulcan officials.

He expects the asking price to be “about $160 million because they know they have a gem now.”

His proposal: The Bears or the village would buy the land. Then the Bears would build a domed, 80,000-seat stadium, which the team would give to the village. In return, Carr would charge the team $1 a year in rent. As a publicly owned stadium, it would be exempt from property taxes.

A Chicago Bears stadium there would be an interesting compromise.

At first, the site feels too small for the team to consider. Both possible locations in Arlington Heights and Indiana are over 320 acres. A site of 150 acres is less than half that size. That won’t leave much room for business expansion. Then again, there are things working in this proposal’s favor. A former quarry site won’t have any notable environmental protections to worry about. The town is directly down I-55 from downtown, runs past Midway International Airport, and has Metra train access. So there are some transportation benefits.

Perhaps most importantly, it is closer to the city. Arlington Heights is a 35-minute drive to downtown and 50 minutes during rush hour. McCook is 15 minutes and 25 with traffic. City officials have worked hard to block any move to Arlington because it would drastically reduce commuter traffic downtown on gamedays. That wouldn’t be as big a problem with McCook. Being closer to downtown means commuters will traverse through it to reach the township for games, maintaining strong revenue streams.

Truth be told, we’re probably past this point.

It’s been made clear that the Chicago Bears stadium discussion is down to two sites. Either Arlington Heights or a spot somewhere in Hammond. The only possible third option they might consider is something downtown, but we’ve already seen how problematic that is. Besides, McCook is in Cook County. That would just run into the same property tax issues that plague the Arlington negotiations. If those were somehow figured out, the Bears would want to just build there, not McCook.

The one big selling point is the closer proximity to Chicago. Such an idea might get Mayor Brandon Johnson and his voting bloc on board. It keeps the revenue flowing to the city and erases a major obstacle in the legislature. Maybe that will be enough if it becomes clear over the next few months that Arlington Heights and Hammond are stuck in bureaucratic quicksand. For now, don’t expect the McCaskeys to deviate from the current course unless they receive an outrageous offer from somewhere else.