The Chicago Bears finally broke through to the playoffs for the first time in five years. They won their first playoff game in 15 years. It feels like the team is trending in the right direction, knocking on the door of a Super Bowl run. However, fans have seen this before. The team has a great season, looks poised for big things, and then withers away the next year. It happened in 1994, 2001, and 2018. Maintaining success is the hardest part for every GM in the business, and Ryan Poles is about to face the test.

He already watched the Washington Commanders completely botch it this year. After reaching the NFC championship last season, they went all in this past spring. They traded for Laremy Tunsil and Deebo Samuel, added several veteran names, and pushed every chip to the center of the table. Then they didn’t even make the playoffs. Now they’re left with the league’s oldest roster and no sense of direction. How can the Bears avoid the same fate? Examining other situations around the league, two organizations offer a roadmap.

They are the New Orleans Saints and Buffalo Bills.

Ryan Poles should take his lessons from how they avoided long letdowns.

The Saints were a non-entity for most of the 1990s and 2000s but broke through in 2006 on the shoulders of quarterback Drew Brees and head coach Sean Payton. It was also true of Buffalo in 2017, which hadn’t made the playoffs since 1999. Both managed to stay competitive in the following years and made multiple deep playoff runs. How? Here is a breakdown.

Keep your 1st round picks

Don’t get in the habit of trading those away. Use them to maintain a steady pipeline of young talent onto the roster. In the three years following their ’06 run, the Saints added Robert Meachem, Sedrick Ellis, and Malcolm Jenkins in the 1st round. All three were key contributors on their Super Bowl team in 2009. Buffalo did even better, nabbing Josh Allen, Tremaine Edmunds, and Ed Oliver in the next two drafts. They would help the Bills reach the conference championship in 2020.

Invest in the trenches

The Bears saw it on Sunday night. Smart teams build through the trenches. That is how you win in the playoffs. New Orleans spent five picks on offensive or defensive linemen in the two drafts after ’06. Two of them became Pro Bowlers on that ’09 team. The Bills spent six picks between 2018 and 2020 on linemen. Three became highly productive starters. Even if you think you’re strong in the trenches, don’t ever stop investing in that area.

Make calculated trades on key players

This one is the toughest. Building exclusively through the draft can work, but it often takes too much time. Ryan Poles and other GMs need to find ways to accelerate the process without breaking the bank. This is done through trades for proven veterans. It’s about finding the right talents and the right fits. New Orleans hit it big when they scored Jonathan Vilma and Jeremy Shockey for 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th round picks in 2008. Their leadership was crucial to the Super Bowl run the next year. As for Buffalo, their blockbuster deal for Stefon Diggs, while breaking the first rule, did prove worth it.

The point is, if the right player is available, it’s okay to take a swing, provided it doesn’t mortgage the future.

Caleb Williams created absolute magic throughout the 2025 season for the Chicago Bears. It is why they went 11-6 and won a playoff game for the first time in 15 years. Unfortunately, he ran into an all-too-familiar problem for young quarterbacks in the divisional round. If you don’t play more efficiently, good teams will take advantage. The Los Angeles Rams picked him off three times in that game, and it proved the difference in preventing the Bears from reaching the NFC championship.

Such lessons are inevitable in the postseason. The question moving forward is what Williams will do about it. He was asked what his plans are for the upcoming offseason as he prepares to enter Year 2 in Ben Johnson’s offense.

“Yeah, got to go and, you know, watch some film and, you know, talk to coach. And then from there, it’s just work on accuracy, work on my feet in the offseason. It’s get with the receivers and work with them and things like that throughout the offseason so that, you know, we’re on the same page. We’re, you know, starting off hot, you know, for training camp OTAs and then going into next season.”

This is another reminder that Williams understands the fundamental reality of playing quarterback, along with his own shortcomings. Footwork and accuracy were the primary issues plaguing him most of the season. The fact that both will be his central focus in the spring and summer should tell you how determined he is to take the next step.

Caleb Williams is taking the Josh Allen approach.

Through his first two seasons, the Buffalo Bills superstar focused on learning the speed of the NFL game and digesting its complexities. By the end of his second season, he was still completing well under 60% of his passes. So in the 2020 offseason, he made it his personal goal to clean up his footwork and improve his accuracy. That season, he completed 69% of his passes for 4500 yards and 37 touchdown passes. It was the first arrival of the MVP contender we’ve grown used to seeing.

That is the path Caleb Williams is charting for himself. He spent this season learning how to read defenses and run Johnson’s offense with practiced efficiency. Now comes cleaning up the smaller details. Remember, the inefficient version of him still threw for 3900 yards, 27 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. Imagine what he can become if he starts hitting those layup throws more consistently. If he achieves the same mastery Allen did, the NFL will not like playing against Williams moving forward.

A really cool post-game moment following the NFC Divisional Round is circulating online, highlighting both the performance and growing reputation of Chicago’s young quarterback.

After the Rams overtime win over the Bears, Rams wide receiver Davante Adams made a point to seek out Bears quarterback Caleb Williams near midfield. In a brief exchange, Adams told Williams, “You a dawg,” a simple statement that carried real weight coming from one of the league’s most respected veterans.

“Real s***, you a dawg. I know you know that. Keep doing your thing.”

Williams is earning respect around the league.

The respect didn’t stop there. Several Rams players were seen offering words to Williams. Former Bear Coleman Shelton shared a moment with Williams as well, telling him he balled out. It was a cool and telling scene, one that showed just how much respect Williams already commands from his peers around the league.

Chicago ultimately fell 20–17 in overtime, but the loss did little to diminish Williams impact. He led a clutch late drive and delivered a fearless fourth-down touchdown pass to force overtime, once again displaying poise, toughness, and elite arm talent. In just his second season under head coach Ben Johnson, Williams has clearly taken a major step forward.

In a league driven by competition and rivalries, moments like this stand out. Seeing established stars openly show respect to a young quarterback is a reminder that Williams isn’t just producing, he’s being recognized.

Game recognizes game, and Caleb Williams has clearly earned it.

The Chicago Bears enacted an unexpected plan at left tackle for the game against Los Angeles when they shifted star guard Joe Thuney to that spot. It was a surprise considering they had both Braxton Jones and Theo Benedet available. Each had started games at that spot this season for the Bears. However, head coach Ben Johnson didn’t trust their ability to anchor against the powerful Rams pass rusher Jared Verse in pass protection. So Thuney because their fourth starting left tackle of the season. It was another reminder of how much that injury to Ozzy Trapilo hurt.

The rookie tackle had come a long way from his unceremonious benching in August after looking like the early favorite for the starting job. He’d become a reliable presence in pass protection and was showing quality progress every week. Now his status for the start of next season is uncertain as he prepares to rehab from patella surgery. Then again, from the way Dan Roushar spoke to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune recently, his spot wouldn’t have been guaranteed even if healthy.

Chicago had lingering concerns about him even before that.

Rookie Ozzy Trapilo underwent surgery Thursday morning to repair his left knee…

…Trapilo has a potentially long road ahead to recover from a patellar tendon injury. You have to imagine the Bears will brace for the possibility that Trapilo won’t be ready to go Week 1, as patellar tendon injuries can put players on grueling rehab schedules…

…“The thing about Ozzy, he’s a smart player and he uses that to his strength,” Roushar said. “However, there are some times where right now — and I’ve talked to him about this and it’s not something we’re going to change immediately — but he’s going to have to gain lower-body strength and get stronger to be able to sustain, redirect.”

With three big swings in the offseason, the Bears turned around the offensive line with Thuney, center Drew Dalman and right guard Jonah Jackson. They might need one more player to take this unit to the next level. Left tackles are hard to find. I’m not looking forward to weekly questions about Darnell Wright switching to left tackle in the offseason. Wright has been really good at right tackle; he’s fine there.

But this position is worth watching, with Trapilo’s injury and Johnson surely wanting things to be more settled up front.

Ozzy Trapilo can’t fix that issue anytime soon.

Improving his lower-body strength would’ve been a primary focus this offseason. Unfortunately, all that time must now be spent rehabbing his knee and getting back to full health. It’s become clear since the beginning that Ben Johnson will not lower his standards regarding the left tackle position. He needs the player at that position to fill very specific criteria. At the top of the list is the ability to anchor in pass protection. Jones couldn’t do it. Benedet couldn’t do it. Trapilo couldn’t do it often enough.

It might be time to accept the possibility that the Bears might be bigger players in the left tackle market than people think. Remember, Jones and Benedet are both free agents. Ozzy Trapilo may not be ready for the start of the season. There is a strong possibility they could go hunting for a starter, whether in free agency or at the top of the NFL draft. It is one of the most important positions in the sport. While helping the defense is an obvious priority, Johnson may deem left tackle more important.

Much may depend on whether the Bears decide to bring Jones or Benedet back.

Chicago Bears reports went into the locker room after the team’s overtime defeat at the hands of the Los Angeles Rams, expecting utter devastation. Sure, players were disappointed and depressed that the season was over. However, there also seemed to be a surprising air of optimism permeating the room. One would expect it came from the realization that this team finally has a quarterback. Despite his three turnovers, Caleb Williams once again had them in position to win.

That was part of it. Confidence in Williams has never been higher. Guys believe he has all the makings of a superstar. However, another part of the positive vibe had to do with Dennis Allen. Players were ecstatic at the game the defensive coordinator called, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. He had Sean McVay in purgatory all night, holding the #1 offense in the NFL to just 17 points in regulation. It was a masterclass by the Bears’ defensive coordinator, and in the biggest game of the season.

What’s more, it was the first look in weeks at the defense mostly healthy.

“Lot of different disguises and perfect play calling,” said Brisker, who had a game-high 14 tackles. “Guys were executing and trusting each other. We did a wonderful job of executing it. He called the game so well. We were attacking Stafford, showing him different looks and really getting him frustrated. I appreciate DA for that.”

Probably more importantly, the Bears used that edge pressure to cut off the outside zone running game to prevent Kyren Williams and Blake Corum from getting to the corner. Most of the Bears defensive backs at one point or another did a great job in those situations. The Rams ran the ball 31 times for 111 yards (3.6 average) and had only one explosive run — a 10-yard gain by Williams. That’s a big reason they were 5 of 16 (31.3%) on third down.

The Chicago Bears saw what Allen’s defense could be near full strength.

Aside from T.J. Edwards and Dayo Odeyingbo, the Bears had all of their starters on the field, including Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Johnson, Tremaine Edmunds, and Grady Jarrett. All missed significant time throughout the season with various injuries. All were terrific most of the night at slowing down the Los Angeles attack. Now able to deploy his full arsenal, Allen matched wits with the best in the NFL and fought him to a standstill. This was exactly the coach the Bears thought they were getting when hiring him.

Now there is a knowledge inside Halas Hall that if the Chicago Bears can fortify the defensive personnel a little more this spring, they have the makings of an elite unit on their hands. Pair that with Ben Johnson’s blossoming offense, and that sounds like the makings of a Super Bowl contender. Looking at it that way, you start to understand why guys weren’t down too much. This coaching staff is loaded with talent. Just get them some players and watch the fun unfold.