George McCaskey couldn’t be more thrilled with the state of the Chicago Bears going into 2026. They’re coming off a division title and beat the Green Bay Packers in a playoff game. It was the perfect tribute to his late mother, Virginia McCaskey, who died in February of 2025. At the heart of that resurgence was quarterback Caleb Williams and head coach Ben Johnson. That pairing produced fireworks unlike anything Bears fans have seen before, including seven 4th quarter comebacks and the first top-10 offense seen in 12 years.

All signs to this point suggest the two have developed a strong relationship built on trust and like-minded thinking. Both want to win and are willing to do everything possible to make it happen. That should continue moving forward. However, if there is one thing we know about football, it is that big egos are always involved. Those egos tend to get hurt when they feel they’re not getting enough credit. So one must wonder how the Williams-Johnson dynamic will work if their success grows. Especially when McCaskey throws out quotes like the one he gave to ESPN.

The swagger, the “good, better, best” chants after wins, the trash talk all conspire to mold Johnson into the type of coach who epitomizes a city and fanbase that sense something special might be happening.

It’s why McCaskey describes Johnson in the simplest — and most reverential — way: “He’s the face of the franchise.”

George McCaskey inadvertently touched on an interesting subject.

Presuming the Bears’ success continues in the coming years, who will get the majority of credit? This is something that has soured relationships between coaches and quarterbacks in years past. Roger Staubach retired after the 1979 season in part due to ongoing issues with head coach Tom Landry over the team’s offensive success. Bill Walsh and Joe Montana grew distant with each other, even as they won a third Super Bowl in 1988, because of Walsh’s constant insistence on playing Steve Young.

By far the most famous breakup was that of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. Here were two men who won six Super Bowls, establishing themselves as the greatest QB-coach duo in history. Yet it reached a point where debates rose about who was more responsible for that success. It got to a point where Brady was tired of Belichick’s constant prodding and insecurity about it. That is why he left in 2020, signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If the Bears reach that point where they achieve championship success, what happens if Williams or Johnson gets most of the credit?

The Bears aren’t strangers to this.

They’ve had coaches and quarterbacks deal with fractious relationships before. Mike Ditka and Jim McMahon were famous for not getting along during their peak years in the 1980s. Jay Cutler and Lovie Smith had their disagreements about how the team should be operated during their four seasons together. We all know what happened with Mitch Trubisky and Matt Nagy. Truth be told, the Bears haven’t had a truly harmonious relationship between head coach and quarterback since George Halas and Sid Luckman in the 1940s.

George McCaskey has every reason to be thrilled with the relationship between Johnson and Williams going into their second season. What he said wasn’t meant as a slight to his young quarterback. Still, it did raise an uncomfortable topic that may become something more a few years down the line. We always talk about relationships weathering failure. Can the Bears’ most important one in years weather success? We’ll find out over the next few seasons.

Chicago Bears fans have sworn up and down that Caleb Williams is already one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. They’d watched every game last season. They saw the elite playmaking ability. The maturation as a leader and knack for making things happen when they absolutely had to. The Bears don’t win the division or a playoff game without his exploits last season, which is not something anybody has said about a quarterback for this team in a long time. Unfortunately, plenty of fans and national media outlets haven’t been willing to give Williams the credit he deserves.

That finally changed. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN has been releasing his annual series of top 10 rankings for every position group, voted on by executives, coaches, and scouts. The Bears are well-represented this year with members of the top 10 in tight ends, guards, and offensive tackles. However, the big surprise for many is Williams cracking the list at quarterback. He claimed the final spot at #10, beating out serious contenders like Jordan Love, Baker Mayfield, and Super Bowl-winner Sam Darnold. The primary reason is easily the best part.

10. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears

Here’s where it gets interesting. Four quarterbacks — Williams, Seattle’s Sam Darnold, Green Bay’s Jordan Love and Washington’s Jayden Daniels — were very close in voting for the 10th spot. So we took it to tiebreakers, gathering input from several general managers and executives. Why did Williams barely win out for the final spot on the list? He’s the hardest of the four for teams to prepare for and defend.

“He’s the most dynamic of the group,” one GM said. “He’s got the arm talent and overall athleticism suited for today’s game.”

His 11 touchdowns thrown at least 20 yards downfield were two more than any other quarterback last season. He reduced his sack total from 68 to 24 year-over-year, too. And Williams’ 13 interceptions on 1,130 career passing attempts are an excellent clip. His playmaking is sustainable. Plus, Williams’ six fourth-quarter comebacks in 2025 led the league.

“He’s a closer,” an NFL personnel evaluator said. “End of games, he has shown that.”

His inconsistencies did give some voters pause. His 20.2% off-target rate was 37th out of 38 quarterbacks in 2025, though his ability to keep plays alive and throw the ball away contributes to this.

“Wildly erratic,” a veteran NFL defensive coach said. “Doesn’t always take the layups and still needs to mature into the position. [He] has some of those ‘what is he doing?’ plays. But he also makes plays only he and Mahomes can make. [He] can throw from any angle, deceptively fast when forced to scramble and he’s got the ‘it’ factor in crunch time.”

Caleb Williams left no doubt about his clutch factor.

Leading seven 4th quarter comebacks in a single season is impossible to dispute. Granted, a couple of them were directly spearheaded by the quarterback, but the majority of them were. What made it even crazier was that three of those comebacks saw the Bears trailing by 10 or more points with five minutes left. The Bears still trailed with two minutes remaining in all seven of those games. This was never a case of them trailing at the start of the 4th quarter and quickly regaining the lead with plenty of time left.

In hindsight, this shouldn’t have been a surprise. Caleb Williams showed death-defying traits as far back as high school. He won a state championship on a Hail Mary. His first game in college saw him come off the bench to erase a 21-point lead, carrying Oklahoma to its biggest-ever comeback over Texas. The signs had always been there that the quarterback had a certain flair for the dramatic. Last season was merely confirmation that he is indeed that dude. Much to the dismay of Green Bay Packers fans.

Love has not demonstrated anything close to that.

Mind you, he received plenty of praise in his honorable mention. Experts view the Packers’ quarterback as a smart and capable starter who’s gotten better every year. However, they stopped short of calling him a true difference-maker. That shouldn’t be a surprise. Love, for all his statistical output, is 1-3 in the playoffs. That includes a loss to Williams in a head-to-head showdown last season. If that weren’t enough, he seems to play his worst football in the 4th quarter. Since becoming a starter in 2023, he’s completing 58% of his passes with 22 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in the final period.

This is an unfamiliar and uncomfortable feeling for Green Bay. They subsisted on elite, clutch quarterback play for 30 years between Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. They’ve insisted up and down that Love is in that same tier. He’s simply disrespected. Yet the numbers don’t lie. When the team has asked him to make something happen in big games, he has come up small too often. They talk about his four touchdowns in the playoff game against Chicago. They fail to mention that he only produced six points in the second half.

Williams had 25 in the 4th quarter alone.

The Chicago Bears have their roster set for training camp. Players report at the end of this month. Rookies on the 25th and veterans a day later. For the first time in what feels like years, fans pretty much know what to expect. Caleb Williams is the starting quarterback. Ben Johnson is the head coach. Colston Loveland, Rome Odunze, Luther Burden, and D’Andre Swift are your starters on offense. It is an exciting time to be a Bears fan. That said, we’ve learned that camp can often hatch unexpected surprises.

Some of them are small. One or two are huge. This year doesn’t figure to be any different. That begs the question. What will those surprises be? Here are some bold predictions. Each will be a little bolder than the last, starting with the most plausible and moving into straight-up crazy territory. Which ones do you think are most likely to happen?

Check down: The Chicago Bears add a veteran pass rusher before the season

General manager Ryan Poles made it clear the team wants to keep things as they are at edge rusher. They were encouraged by what they saw from Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner before both went down with season-ending injuries. Hopes are high that they can pick up where they left off upon returning. The truth is that the Bears were reluctant to spend any further money at the position. We’ll see what happens when they watch the position operate in camp for a few weeks. If it looks anything like it did last season, you can reasonably bet that the team will finally relent and go hunting for veteran help, be it in free agency or the trade market. Don’t be surprised if it happens before the preseason.

Quick slant: Logan Jones beats out Garrett Bradbury for the starting center job

When pitting a veteran against a rookie in training camp battles, the veteran almost always has the edge. He understands how to prepare and is equipped to learn an offense quickly. Bradbury just went to a Super Bowl in New England. He is battle-tested. It’s only natural to think he is the favorite to replace Drew Dalman at center. The problem for him is that Logan Jones isn’t a normal rookie. He’s 25 years old with 51 games of experience in college. This isn’t a kid. He is a fully grown adult who is a perfect fit for Ben Johnson’s offensive system. If both play at similar levels next month, the logical decision is to go with the younger option.

Crosser: Tyson Bagent plays so well in the preseason that another team trades for him

Now we’re getting into the really bold territory. The Chicago Bears brass have stated they have no plans to trade their backup quarterback. Bagent is a valued member of the roster. Coach Johnson has stated his own belief that the young QB is one of the 32 best in the league, meaning he should probably be starting somewhere. The Bears are fortunate he’s their #2. However, history says that Bagent should have another terrific preseason run, as he has the past two years. This time will be different, though. He will perform at a high enough level that other teams can no longer ignore his potential. Some team will suffer an unplanned injury and decide they’re willing to pay the price tag to pry Bagent from Chicago.

Deep out: Jordan Van Den Berg supplants Grady Jarrett at defensive tackle

This one will probably stun some people. After all, despite his injury setback, Jarrett was still a steady presence in the middle as a run defender. That isn’t the concern. It is that the 33-year-old has lost his trademark explosiveness as an interior pass rusher. Those who know Dennis Allen’s defensive system understand that he wants smaller, quicker interior linemen to create havoc in the middle. Van Den Berg is the most explosive defensive tackle they have on the roster. If he doesn’t get too overwhelmed by the scheme during camp, there is absolutely a world where the Bears coaches feel he can have a greater impact as a starter, leaving Jarrett in a more rotational role.

Hail Mary: Kiran Amegadjie wins the Bears left tackle job

You want a heat check? You got a heat check. Everybody believes that Braxton Jones is the favorite to claim the left tackle job. Understandably so. He’s the most experienced and most proven of the notable names in the mix. Jedrick Wills has the talent but not the knowledge of the offense. Theo Benedet has the knowledge but not the talent. That said, here’s the thing. Jones was already benched once before. The Chicago Bears coaches know what they have with him. Amegadjie is more physically gifted than Jones and also knows the offense, too. Injuries have set him back to this point. Let this be the 1000-to-1 odds wager that this time he puts everything together and steals the starting job to the shock of everybody.

The Chicago Bears knew last offseason that they had to upgrade the offensive line going into 2025. It was vital to the success of Ben Johnson’s new offense. What followed was arguably one of the best single-season turnarounds of any position group in franchise history. After allowing 68 sacks in 2024, three major moves helped the unit allow just 24 last year. It started with trading for veteran guard Jonah Jackson from Los Angeles. Another was signing free agent center Drew Dalman. However, the lynchpin of the entire overhaul was unquestionably the trade for guard Joe Thuney.

Despite being 33 years old, many still considered the perennial Pro Bowler the best in football. He’d already won four Super Bowls between stints with the New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. Barring something unexpected, he is destined for a gold jacket in Canton upon retiring. Last season did nothing to change that. He made another Pro Bowl and became the inaugural winner of the Offensive Lineman of the Year award. ESPN ranked him the 5th-best guard in all of football. One coach sounded more than a little hopeful that his retirement comes sooner than later.

5. Joe Thuney, G, Chicago Bears

Highest ranking: 1 | Lowest ranking: Unranked
Age: 33 | Last year’s ranking: 6

Not many NFL players have aged better than Thuney, who led all guards in pass block win rate last season, his 10th in the league. One team executive said Thuney got the highest grade possible for a veteran guard last season.

Thuney also ranked third among guards in run block win rate (77%) while spearheading the Bears’ revamped interior offensive line.

“He’s losing a little lateral quickness, but he’s so technically sound and tough and sturdy and stronger than you’d think that it doesn’t really matter,” an NFC exec said. “He was awesome last year.”

Added a veteran NFL defensive coach: “He kicked our ass last year.”

Thuney was a marvel last season.

Think about this. The man was left one-on-one in pass-blocking situations 322 times over the course of the season. He allowed just 17 pressures and zero sacks. His 97.4 pass blocking efficiency was the highest of any guard who logged over 300 such snaps. Not only that, but he’s also the only guard to not allow a sack with such a workload. Evan Brown is the only other name to accomplish allowing no sacks, but he only had 244. The point is that Thuney was operating on a different level from everybody else.

Nobody knows how much longer he plans to play. Perhaps he’s hoping to secure one more ring before calling it a career. He’d become the only the second player in NFL history to win a Super Bowl with three different franchises, joining linebacker Matt Millen. If that title came with the Bears, it would cement one of the all-time great legacies for any player in league history. Chicago certainly won’t look to stop him. They understand his value to the team better than anybody.

Thuney’s presence is even more valuable now.

That became clear after Dalman abruptly retired at age 27. It left a huge hole in the middle of their offensive line. Under normal circumstances, it could’ve been disastrous. However, the Bears knew they still had Joe Thuney in place. His steady presence would help them weather any potential storm. As a result, they didn’t mind being aggressive in their efforts to fill that center spot. First, they traded for veteran Garrett Bradbury from New England, and then spent a 2nd round pick on Iowa’s Logan Jones.

Couple this with the ongoing uncertainty at left tackle, and the value of Thuney only grows. Having him sandwiched between those two uncertain spots is incredibly important. It improves the likelihood that there won’t be much of a drop-off in play quality from the offensive line. We already saw what his influence started doing for Ozzy Trapilo last season before he got hurt. The same could prove true for Jones. The more you hear, the easier it is to understand why opposing coaches are hoping he hangs it up soon.

The legacy of the Chicago Bears ownership has been remarkably simple compared to other organizations in NFL history. It started with the great George Halas in 1920 and went all the way through 1983. Then his daughter, Virginia McCaskey, inherited the franchise and held control through February of 2025. Two owners in 105 years is remarkable continuity. Now that burden falls to George McCaskey, Virginia’s son. He has vowed to maintain stewardship of the organization moving forward.

McCaskey isn’t naive. He’s heard all the rumors about selling the Bears. Several of the younger generation who own shares in the team have quietly expressed that desire. McCaskey has remained adamant that it won’t happen. Not on his watch.

“We’ve said for many years that we intend to own the Bears for as long as possible. Another 100 years would be great. She set it up for us to accomplish that. She gave us the playbook. She coached us up. Now we’ve gotta execute the plan, and we’re prepared to do that. We’ve got to stick together.”

While his determination to keep the team in the family is admirable, there is one saying that always prevails in the business world: everybody has a price. Based on recent NFL news, that dollar amount might be reaching a point that McCaskey can’t ignore. The Seattle Seahawks were just sold to investor Vinod Khosla for a record $9.6 billion. That shatters the old record of $6.05 billion for the Washington Commanders in 2023.

George McCaskey is now seeing numbers he can’t ignore.

Prior to the sale, the Seahawks were valued at $6.9 billion. This was partly aided by their recently winning the Super Bowl last season. The Bears, meanwhile, are said to be valued at $8.2 billion. Keep in mind, this is before they construct their new stadium. Presuming that happens within the next couple of years, this would increase their value considerably. As things stand, the Seahawks went for 39.13% more than their valuation. If that were to happen with the Bears, they would go for $11.41 billion. That is without the new stadium, mind you.

For all the talk from George McCaskey about guiding his grandfather’s franchise forward, few people on the planet can just ignore $11 billion. Such a sum would set his family up for generations, allowing them to pursue ventures outside of football. McCaskey is 70 years old. He is no spring chicken. Has he prepared a succession plan? It is impossible to believe this Seahawks news isn’t causing a stir inside Halas Hall, especially among the younger generations. If they were interested in selling before, those calls will only get louder now.

The Bears have always known they aren’t made to own a team.

It takes a certain type of person to do it. They must have a delicate balance of football savvy and business acumen. McCaskey has admitted he certainly doesn’t have the former. He’s said on more than one occasion that he is a fan at heart. He isn’t as knowledgeable about the game as other owners. As for business acumen, his hiring of Kevin Warren as team president raises questions about that as well. The only thing McCaskey has going for him is the good fortune to have landed Ben Johnson as the head coach. His arrival should make the Bears a legitimate playoff contender for the foreseeable future.

It can’t just be about keeping the franchise in the family. Winning championships is the goal. That is something the McCaskeys haven’t done. Everybody knows the 1985 team was the last to have Halas’ fingerprints on it. His successors have seen nothing but failure in the past 40 years. Sometimes, an ownership change is what an organization needs to finally find success. If ever there was a time when selling was justifiable, it’s now. The market is booming. McCaskey would rake in more cash than he’s ever dreamed, and could retire to whatever life he wants.

The Chicago Bears won’t be making any significant moves to improve their roster for at least the next few weeks. Head coach Ben Johnson and GM Ryan Poles are focused on using training camp to see where the roster is at. They feel they have a young, athletic group with depth in several areas. They want to give these young guys an opportunity to blossom rather than having knee-jerk reactions to any potential holes. It might not make fans happy, but it’s a reasonable approach.

That said, the window to make a move will remain open through the end of October. The Bears have been connected to multiple trade possibilities. Some are ridiculous, but others have at least a kernel of truth to them. The following ranking will help determine which of them has the highest probability of coming true.

These Chicago Bears trades have gotten the most smoke.

5. DT Vita Vea

Chicago had the 27th ranked run defense in the NFL last season, allowing 134.5 yards per game. That was a big reason why the unit struggled to get off the field so often. Sure, their pass rush was problematic, but it’s difficult to rush the quarterback when you’re leaving him in so many short down-and-distance situations. Often, the best way to counter this issue is by shoring up the defensive line, preferably with a massive slab of beef that opposing offensive lines will struggle to move. That is where Vea comes in.

The 350-lbs defensive tackle anchored Tampa Bay’s 5th-ranked run defense last season. He’s a two-time Pro Bowler for a reason. However, he’s also in his 30s and entering the last year of his contract. The Bucs likely don’t want to pay him again, which makes a trade idea plausible.

Bears possibility: Low. Trading for older players is something the team usually avoids with rare exceptions. Vea has a $22 million cap hit and is also not a great fit for Dennis Allen’s scheme. He has traditionally preferred smaller, quicker defensive tackles. That is not Vea in any sense.

4. EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux

Trade rumors have surrounded Thibodeaux for months. With how loaded the New York Giants are with edge rushers, it’s no secret they are not likely to extend the former 5th overall pick. Trading him is the logical move, but thus far hasn’t happened. Part of that could be because of the asking price, and another part is the uncertainty about what sort of money Thibodeaux wants. Couple that with his inconsistent production on the field (8 sacks in the past two years), and you understand the reluctance.

Bears possibility: Low. If Poles makes a move for pass rush help, it will come in one of two forms. It will be a depth option at a reasonable price or a big swing for a proven producer. Thibodeaux doesn’t check either box. Perhaps he changes that with a great two months before the trade deadline, but right now, he doesn’t feel like the solution the Bears need.

3. RB Jonathan Taylor

A case can be made that no running back has been more successful over the past four seasons than Taylor. He’s been the engine of the Indianapolis Colts offense since he arrived, cracked 1400 yards rushing in three of the past five seasons. Last year was another dominant one for him. He’s only 27. That said, some believe that Indianapolis might not be eager to pay him another big contract extension. Taylor has gotten a heavy workload since he joined the NFL. That tends to catch up to players as early as their late 20s.

Bears possibility: Moderate. The Chicago Bears don’t need running back help, per se. They were more than strong enough last season with D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai. Yet neither of them is the specimen that Taylor is. Putting him in Ben Johnson’s offensive system would be cheating. If the Colts have a bad start this season, they could look to unload their star back before the wheels fall off.

2. EDGE Maxx Crosby

For a brief period, it sounded like the Chicago Bears were ready to make a serious run at the Pro Bowl edge rusher. Ultimately, the Baltimore Ravens were willing to pay the extra 1st round pick to make a deal happen. However, serious losses in free agency gave them cold feet, and they used a failed physical to back out of the deal. Now Crosby is back in Las Vegas, vowing he’s never leaving. He may feel that way now, but if the Raiders get off to another rough start, he could change his tune by the trade deadline. Maybe the price will have come down enough to where the Bears are ready to take another swing.

Bears possibility: Moderate. We already know the team is interested. Multiple reports proved it. The key issue is price. It went too high for Poles. If it comes down to something more manageable, like a couple of 2nd round picks, that might be enough to make something happen. Then again, Crosby seems dead set on finishing his career in Las Vegas, one way or another.

1. EDGE Josh Sweat

The former Super Bowl champion kept his end of the bargain last season, giving the Arizona Cardinals 12.5 sacks. It didn’t matter much as the team was terrible. Now their head coach, Jonathan Gannon, is gone. He was part of the reason Sweat signed there in the first place. It’s becoming pretty obvious that the team plans to tank for a high pick next year, hoping to reset at quarterback. Sweat, who’s been on winning teams most of his career, doesn’t seem enthusiastic about that. There are rumblings that he could force his way out, hoping to join a competitive team.

Bears possibility: High. In terms of boxes checked, Sweat fits Chicago best. He’s on a contract with three years left, meaning the acquiring team would control him at a reasonable price point through the end of his prime. Sweat is 28 years old and should remain effective for at least another two or three seasons. The Bears badly need somebody dependable who won’t cost too much to get. Sweat would be cheaper than Crosby. We’re likely talking Montez Sweat territory of a 2nd rounder. We already know Poles is willing to swing such deals.