Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson wants to achieve greatness. He feels that should be the goal for every coach, player, or executive in the NFL. If it’s not, why are you even in the league? Yes, Johnson wants to win Super Bowls. As many as possible. That is the endgame. However, it doesn’t stop there. He wants the Bears to field the highest-scoring offense in history. He’s directly aiming for the 606 points the 2013 Denver Broncos achieved. Some believe he’s just saying that to keep his guys focused. Tight end Cole Kmet, of all people, dispelled that idea.

Anybody who has followed the Bears long enough knows that the veteran tight end, one of the longest-tenured on the team, isn’t known for grandiose statements. He’s always been among the more realistic players on the roster, keeping his comments as careful as possible. That is what makes his recent column in the Players’ Tribune so eye-opening. Kmet personally penned an article gushing about the possibilities for the Bears offense this year. He thinks the mixture of Johnson, Caleb Williams, and the array of talent on the roster makes this the most dangerous unit the organization has maybe ever had.

Enough to where Cole Kmet confirmed his coach’s declaration.

“The other thing that has me thinking big things lie ahead is the array of young talent we now have around Caleb. When you hear us talk about wanting to be the highest scoring offense in the history of the NFL … we’re not just saying that. We mean it. That’s literally what we’re shooting for.

Our receivers room has a bunch of guys who are willing to do a lot of different things, not only in the passing game, but in the run game, too. So that means it’s going to be hard for teams to gameplan for us. We’ve got three really good tight ends. And, of course, Colston is an absolute beast. I think he has a chance to develop into one of the top offensive weapons in the league this season. Dude’s a walking mismatch. But if you look at it, we’ve got size and speed at every position. Great backs, incredible O-line. All the ingredients are there.

I wouldn’t recommend running to the concession stands for your adult beverages or Polish sausage sandwiches anytime we have the ball.”

Don’t immediately dismiss the idea.

Yes, many things have to go right for the Bears even to reach 500 points. Never mind 600. That said, a lot of people forget that 2013 Broncos team. Most would assume it was laden with Hall of Fame offensive talent across the board. Sure, they had Peyton Manning at quarterback, but their weapons were more in the really good category than elite. You had Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, and Wes Welker at wide receiver. Julius Thomas handled tight end duties, and Knowshon Moreno was their primary running back.

Of those names, only Welker might end up in Canton one day. The rest were just highly capable players who executed the offense very well. The point is, if you have a good scheme, a good play caller, a good quarterback, and enough talent, it is possible to put everything together. Cole Kmet knows this. He can see the ingredients coming together. Everything comes down to two crucial factors: precise execution and favorable health. The Bears can’t control the latter, but they seem confident about the former now in the second year of this system.

There is one hurdle to clear first.

That is the franchise record for points in a season. This honor is held by the 1985 team, which scored 456 points. It is a fact often lost on people who often reference the defense as the main reason they won a championship. Kmet and his teammates came close to that mark last season, scoring 441. It was the third-best in franchise history. Now it’s time to get serious. Last year was fun. This year is about making a statement. The Bears feel they’re good enough to score on anybody—time to prove it.

Much of this hinges on Williams. His off-script mastery is incredible to watch, but history says it’s not conducive to scoring tons of points. He must learn to play more on time and in rhythm. Become more of a conductor of the orchestra rather than the frontman of the band. Once that gulf is crossed, you’ll see a side of this offense none could’ve imagined. Kmet already knows it’s coming.

The Chicago Bears didn’t need much convincing to sign Kalif Raymond when he became available this offseason. Head coach Ben Johnson knew the wide receiver personally from their years together with the Detroit Lions. He understood what Raymond brought to the table. It started with his obvious skill on offense. His mixture of speed and route-running made him an underrated weapon that could get you two or three meaningful catches. Next was his return ability. Raymond has long been dangerous in the third phase, able to hit for big plays without earning. Last but certainly not least was his leadership.

Ask anybody in the Lions locker room from the past few seasons, and all of them would say Raymond was an unquestioned voice they’d listen to. His dedication to the game was second to none, and he was willing to sacrifice his own success if it helped the team. It is why several Detroit players were upset that he left. It hasn’t taken Raymond long to have that same effect at Halas Hall. Teammates are already benefitting from his presence. Perhaps none more so than Zavion Thomas.

One of Raymond’s first objectives? Take the rookie’s greatest strength and somehow make it even better.

Kalif Raymond understands too well what Thomas brings to the table.

The biggest reason the Bears drafted him in the 3rd round was because of his speed. Few players in the NFL are capable of running a 4.28. Johnson felt the team lacked that sort of field-flipping speed last season. Suddenly, the Bears now have two guys in that category. It is often lost on people how fast Raymond is. However, he understands that his juice is slowly drying up at age 32. Thomas, on the other hand, is 22. He hasn’t even entered his physical prime yet. If the veteran can get him started on speed training now, the results could be devastating for future Bears opponents.

It may sound overly simplistic, but specialized work has repeatedly proven to have a tangible impact on players who embrace it. Look at running back Derrick Henry. The 247-lbs running back ran a solid but unremarkable 4.54 in the 40-yard dash coming out of Alabama. Then, as his NFL career unfolded, you’re seeing him put together runs that topped out at 21.8 mph. That is the same ballpark as some of the NFL’s best wide receivers like JaMarr Chase, Jaylen Waddle, and Jordan Addison.

Kalif Raymond knows Thomas is fast. That doesn’t mean one shouldn’t look to make him even faster.

Raymond won’t stop there.

He knows as well as anybody that speed alone doesn’t make a successful NFL wide receiver. Plenty of guys game into the league who could run fast and accomplished nothing of note. It’s not just about the speed. It is about harnessing the speed and using it to maximum effect. That means improving the release and route-running. Both of which are crucial to giving a receiver the critical space needed to unleash their full speed. NFL cornerbacks are too talented and disciplined just to let guys run free.

Thomas must learn to use his hands and eyes to find those small openings. Once he does, the speed will take care of the rest. Raymond spent years learning this. His willingness to pass that knowledge down can’t be overstated. He also knows that there is no such thing as too big an advantage. Yes, Thomas is already fast. You can never be too fast, though. Raymond putting him into that line of thinking this early will only benefit him in the long run.

Caleb Williams has heard about the topic of his completion percentage plenty of times. The 58.1 number was the worst among starting quarterbacks last season. Most view that as his fatal flaw. You can’t win a championship if you’re barely completing over half of your passes. Williams has acknowledged the issue many times and vowed to fix it. What people aren’t sure about is how. History shows that quarterbacks who come into the league with a certain completion rate don’t drastically improve it over time…unless you’re Drew Brees.

The Hall of Fame quarterback wasn’t known as the most precise passer during his early years in the NFL. He hovered around 62% for the first six seasons of his career. Then, almost out of nowhere, he jumped to 69.1% over the rest of his career. What was his secret? Brees got the chance to speak with Williams in a production meeting ahead of the Chicago Bears‘ opener in Carolina. The two talked football, and the legend imparted some surprisingly simple advice. Adam Amin, Brees’ broadcast partner, revealed what it was on 104.3 The Score.

“You know what the difference is between a 60% passer and a 70% passer? Three completions.”

Drew Brees is conveying to Williams how much the little things matter.

Hunting for the big play is fine. That is a great mindset to have. However, it shouldn’t be done at the sacrifice of the smaller plays. Unless you’re careful, those stack up over time. A misfire here or a drop there can derail drives and take points off the board. Williams doesn’t have to overthink this thing. Just find three more completions each game. Last season, that would’ve equated to 51 more completions, which would’ve brought his total from 330 to 381. That would’ve given him a highly respectable 67.08% for the year.

Remember, Williams averaged 11.9 yards per completion last year. That would’ve equated to 606 additional yards, which would’ve brought his total to 4,547 yards. Even if you cut those added yards in half, it’s still fantastic output. This is what Drew Brees is talking about. Hunting for those three extra completions is not a bad thing. They may seem minor in the moment, but they can stack up over the course of a game. Williams has seen it work already. Go watch his performance in London against Jacksonville as a rookie. He didn’t press, taking easier completions, and stayed ahead of the chains.

Brees is actually the perfect counterbalance to Williams.

The Bears quarterback has a style of play that is the complete antithesis of how Brees played. He’s a scrambler who can make magic outside the pocket. Brees was strictly a pocket guy, which meant he had to play the chess match. Take what the defense gives you and save the big moves for the right time. That is why he might be a perfect sounding board for Williams. He can teach him a different way to play the game. If Williams can incorporate those lessons, he immediately becomes so much harder to defend.

It is essentially what happened with Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City. He started out as a dangerous scrambler that sliced up defenses with off-script magic. However, over time, he learned to play more from the pocket and take easy completions when they were there. Williams doesn’t have to overthink the process. Just find three extra completions each week. Doesn’t matter if they’re for 4 yards or 24. If you can do that, you’re playing at a far higher level.

When news broke that left tackle Ozzy Trapilo had returned to the Chicago Bears late in training camp, people were stunned. Fans and media alike couldn’t believe the young blocker had managed to return so quickly from his knee injury in January. This wasn’t your garden-variety ACL or meniscus tear. Trapilo had ruptured his patellar tendon. That is probably one of the nastiest injuries you can suffer in any sport, and supposedly takes a long time to come back from. Trapilo returning to practice just eight months later is unheard of.

What may shock people is that the Bears were equally stunned. There had been indications months ago that the team believed Trapilo might not return in 2026 at all. Offensive line coach Dan Roushar admitted as much during his recent press conference. The prognosis was so bad that he even asked head trainer Andre Tucker if he’d seen these types of injuries recover. Tucker’s response was unsettling.

“Not many.”

It’s pretty clear the Bears were bracing for the possibility that Trapilo’s career might be effectively over. He would never regain his old form.

Understand that Ozzy Trapilo is in mostly uncharted territory.

There have been NFL players who suffered patella injuries and managed to return to form. Tight end Jimmy Graham was one. Pass rusher Terrell Suggs and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas were others. The list is short, though. It also has one other notable fact. No prominent offensive linemen feature in it. Almost all of the tackle, guards, or centers who suffered a patella rupture never returned to full strength. It isn’t hard to see why. Lugging around over 300 lbs of mass puts a ton of pressure on those joints. The patella is critical to a player’s mobility, and linemen are limited in that department even when healthy.

Ozzy Trapilo suffering that injury would’ve been a guaranteed death knell as early as a decade ago. However, modern medicine at least gave him a legitimate chance to recover. It appears the rehab process went perfectly. Not only is he back on the field, but he isn’t wearing a brace of any kind. That suggests he’s not experienced any notable pain. Moving into team drills this week is a strong indication that Trapilo could return to the lineup before the end of the month. A timeline that not a single person thought was possible.

A few factors likely worked in his favor.

For one, Trapilo is still young. He’s only 24 years old. Younger bodies tend to heal more efficiently. The other part is his genetics. Ozzy has NFL bloodlines in his family. His father, Steve Trapilo, played six seasons with the New Orleans Saints in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He helped them make the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. So it stands to reason that his son would have the body chemistry necessary to handle the rigors of playing football. That includes recovering from injuries.

The truth is, some guys heal faster than others. It is a weird quirk of the human condition. The Bears certainly won’t complain. It looked for a time like their long-term plans at left tackle were dashed before they’d ever really had a chance to materialize. If Trapilo truly is back to his old self by the time he resumes playing, it will go down as one of the great medical marvels of the past decade.

The Chicago Bears made some truly bold decisions on defense this offseason. It started with letting Kevin Byard, Jaquan Brisker, and C.J. Gardner-Johnson leave in free agency. That was their top three safeties from last season. They also cut Tremaine Edmunds at linebacker and then, perhaps most shocking of all, traded Gervon Dexter, who was second on the team with 6 sacks. Competitive teams don’t do that unless the cap leaves them no choice or they feel they have some younger options ready to step in. For the Bears, it’s a little of column A and a little of column B. In the latter category, Jordan Van Den Berg is the hot name.

Nobody knew him when the Bears selected him in the 6th round last April. All they understood was he’s a defensive tackle from Georgia Tech who tested off the charts in athletic drills. Maybe he’d make an interesting project. Not a single person expected the rookie to play so well in training camp and the preseason that he’d already be working with the starters. Yet even this doesn’t illustrate how excited the Bears are about him. They believe he will have an impact right away, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports.

“The Bears have been very excited about sixth-round defensive tackle Jordan van den Berg since the predraft process, as if he were their secret player that the rest of the league hadn’t yet discovered. Expect him to affect Chicago’s defensive front.”

Jordan Van Den Berg is an ultra-rare case.

It’d be one thing if he were 1st round pick. Unloading established veterans for high draft choices is common practice in the NFL. Go with the younger, healthier, and cheaper option over the aging, expensive vet. To unload a former 2nd round pick who is still just 24 years old and was productive last season? That is the equivalent of seeing a double rainbow on a sunny day. It just doesn’t happen. Yet, from the way things sound, Van Den Berg has looked that good throughout the summer.

No player, offense or defense, who was drafted that low has caused that kind of cascade effect so quickly for the Bears. Jordan Van Den Berg backed it up on the field, too. Despite not registering a sack, his impact on the game was hard to miss. Opponents struggled to keep him out of the backfield, and his presence helped teammates make big plays. It probably helps that the Bears seem to have gotten positive results from other additions like Neville Gallimore, Kentavius Street, James Lynch, and fellow rookie Jayden Loving. Yet Van Den Berg stood out above them all.

The rookie is in for a test.

Carolina worked hard this offseason to bolster their interior offensive line. They signed center Luke Fortner away from New Orleans, where he allowed just 11 pressures in 2025. Guard Robert Hunt returns from a season-ending injury after making the Pro Bowl in 2024. Then you have Damien Lewis coming off his best season, allowing 17 pressures. It’s a trio that looks formidable on paper. The Bears will need somebody to break up their rhythm. Van Den Berg certainly has the power, explosiveness, and motor to do it.

His biggest obstacle is discipline. Top defensive tackles aren’t just the talented ones. They’re the guys with the technique and fundamentals to beat blockers with their hands. That was something Van Den Berg struggled with in college. It’s no surprise. Most young players do. Working with Grady Jarrett this offseason has had a significant impact on his progress. If he brings everything together on Sunday, the predictions are right. He’ll make something happen.

The 2024 NFL draft shaped up to be one of the best quarterback classes in years. That is why the Chicago Bears were so fortunate to land the #1 overall pick via the blockbuster trade with the Carolina Panthers. They had their pick of anybody they wanted. In the end, we all know the outcome. They opted to take Caleb Williams. For the next several months, they would come under fire several times for that decision. Not necessarily because Williams was bad. It was more because his two primary counterparts, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye, thrived.

Daniels had one of the great rookie seasons for a quarterback in NFL history, willing the Washington Commanders to an NFC Championship appearance. Maye followed a solid rookie year by finishing second in MVP voting and getting the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl. Those two were establishing themselves as the cream of the crop from that class despite Williams’ steady improvement. It is incredible to see how swiftly the narrative has shifted over the past several months.

Never more so than on opening night.

Maye’s meltdown in Seattle has left the door open for Caleb Williams.

Questions about Maye began to surface during the Patriots’ playoff run last year. While they kept finding ways to win, he was not playing well. It all came crashing down in the Super Bowl, where he threw two interceptions and lost a fumble. Opening night on Wednesday marked his chance for redemption while also quieting the discussion about his true ability. He did neither. Maye squandered a 10-0 lead in the second with three brutal interceptions, allowing the Seahawks to rally for a 13-10 victory.

It was a performance that furthered a growing narrative that Maye is only good when he’s faced mediocre-to-bad opponents. Much of his success last season came from a cupcake schedule and being able to lean on a strong defense. Couple this with Daniels’ injury woes in Washington, and suddenly the door is wide open for somebody else to seize the narrative. Caleb Williams made magic last season for the Bears, often saving some of his best performances for top competition. Entering his second year with Ben Johnson, he is primed to show everybody why he was the #1 pick for a reason.

Williams has improved more than anybody in his class.

Daniels regressed from his rookie year. Maye improved in his second season before backsliding late. Bo Nix has been a perfect pilot for Sean Payton’s system in Denver. Yet Williams made bigger strides than anybody last season. He cut his sack total from 68 to 24, showing remarkable improvement at avoiding pressure. He executes much better from the pocket and demonstrated a firmer grasp of pre-snap reads. The only criticism people have clung to is his poor 58.1 completion percentage.

If he can get that back to a solid level while maintaining his momentum from last season, Williams is poised to establish himself as one of the NFL’s best. Daniels and Maye had their shots to leave any doubt. Both failed. This feels like the perfect moment for Williams to seize the crown. There is no better way to do that than by succeeding where they failed. Win the Super Bowl. Easy to say, of course. Way harder to do. One thing is clear. Maye has lost his grip on the narrative.

None is better positioned to seize it than Williams.

The Chicago Bears are done speculating. Training camp is over. The preseason has passed. It’s time to play some real football games. Their quest to finish what they started last season begins in Carolina against a Panthers team that made the playoffs last season. It’s a team that had a habit of playing its best against good teams. The Bears certainly fit that category, which is why this figures to be a competitive game. Or at least it should be unless the Panthers can’t stop losing key players.

This offseason has been a brutal one for them. Injuries have slammed their roster across the board. Neither starting offensive tackle will play in this game. One is dealing with a knee injury, and the other has blood clot issues. The defense has been hit just as hard. Promising young pass rusher Nic Scourton tore his ACL, ending his season before it began. Defensive tackle Bobby Brown is dealing with a back problem. Now the team has more bad news up front, as pass rusher Pat Jones will not play due to a back injury.

The Chicago Bears don’t need much help.

Carolina is smart enough to know that. This unit is loaded with young, dynamic talent. They had one of the best offensive lines in football last season, and it’s mostly the same as last year. The only difference is the retirement of center Drew Dalman, who’s been replaced by veteran Garrett Bradbury. With Scourton and Jones now out, the Panthers’ depth on the edges has become a major concern. Big-ticket free agent addition Jaelan Phillips and former 2nd round pick Princely Umanmielen are their two likely starters.

After that, you’re looking at guys like Trevis Gipson and Thomas Incoom. Asking them to get past Darnell Wright feels like an exercise in futility. If they can’t take advantage of Braxton Jones on the other side, it could be a long day on defense for Carolina. Caleb Williams is hard enough to defend even when he’s constantly under pressure. If you let him have clean pockets on a regular basis, you’re asking for trouble. This doesn’t even mention the Chicago Bears’ strong rushing attack. The Panthers were 20th against the run last season.

Jones’ loss gives the Bears a clearer game plan.

Their goal in this matchup is simplified. Slow down Phillips, and the odds are pretty good that Carolina won’t be able to generate much pressure off the edge. That means an interior defensive front that had 10 sacks total last season must pick up the slack against Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson. You’re starting to see the domino effect here. Jones’ loss isn’t crippling to the Panthers, but it hurts. They were already going to have a hard time stopping the Bears. Losing a pass rusher makes it even worse.

Still, the burden falls on Chicago to take advantage. They can’t just assume that their success last season will magically carry over into 2026. As Johnson has said several times, that team is gone. This one has no reason to be cocky about anything. It is starting at zero with everybody else. If the Bears want respect, they’ll have to go out again and earn it.