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Even with a playoff berth under their belt, it’s hard to call the 2020 season a successful season for the Chicago Bears. Thanks to the smoke and the mirrors – and the NFL added another playoff team to every conference – the 8-8 team was only able to return to the playoffs to get a bombing at the hands of the New Orleans Saints on Super Wild-Card Weekend. While they technically formed a playoff squad, signing wins throughout the season were hard to come by. The Bears went 1-7 against the playoff teams and were clearly a class below elite NFC teams like the Saints and Packers, who have beaten them fairly easily in their last two games.
What that three-game winning streak towards the end of the season that put them on edge for the playoffs likely made the seats of Ryan Pace, Matt Nagy and Mitchell Trubisky cool a bit after they were white-hot after six matches. mid-season slippage.
But where does Chicago go from here? Does the team have to take a few steps back to take giant steps? That’s what we’ll try to detail here today by highlighting a few key points the bears will need to address to get back into conflict by 2021 and beyond.
Examine the masthead
President George McCaskey really needs to spend the next few days putting the 2020 Bears under the microscope and combing through the mediocre campaign. Despite a playoff series, Chicago is nowhere near being one of those elite NFC teams that are legitimately competing for a Super Bowl, as we’ve seen in their last two games against Green Bay and New Orleans. Just because they made it through to the tournament doesn’t mean it should automatically disqualify a review from general manager Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy. This duo have been strong enough to build the Bears at this point, but are they able to take them to the next level? This is something McCaskey needs to assess.
After all, the mediocrity of an 8-8, one-and-done playoff team is the last place you want to be in the NFL.
Under Pace, Chicago has built a solid defense but only has one winning season during his tenure, and the GM has stumbled upon himself trying to find an elite quarterback. Meanwhile, Nagy’s squads have been a bit inconsistent, which was highlighted this year after they melted to a .500 record after a 5-1 start.
While the two may have saved their jobs for at least one more season, it might be fair to question whether team president Ted Phillips should be the one to leave the scene properly. Regardless of the team’s orientation, McCaskey must make that decision and act quickly if he decides a revamped masthead is needed.
Cut ties with Trubisky, find a new QB
There is no doubt that Mitchell Trubisky was the best in the world having reclaimed his starting position in Week 12. From that point until the end of the regular season, Trubisky completed 70.1% of his passes, averaged nearly 250 yards per game and had a 2-1 TD-INT report. That said, his bears were .500 over that stretch and it looked like he had turned back to a pumpkin in the loss to New Orleans last weekend. There, he threw for just 199 yards and a touchdown in the trash as Chicago’s season quickly came to a close.
While one game isn’t enough to make a decision on a player, all of the work during Trubisky’s tenure with the Bears was … meh. It would probably do both sides good to go their separate ways this offseason, which they can do very easily as Trubisky’s fifth-year option was not taken up and he can just enter free will. It’s definitely a tough pill to swallow, admitting your mistake on a quarterback you picked second overall, but it’s a necessary step for the Bears as they retool.
Once they’ve left Trubisky, targeting a quarterback like Jimmy Garoppolo – from Illinois – or Carson Wentz in the commerce market might be a good way to lean. Another route could be some sort of double dip to the post by signing a veteran (Ryan Fitzpatrick or Andy Dalton?) And pairing him up with a rookie selected in the 2021 NFL Draft. The Bears pick 20th in the first round and l CBS Sports NFL draft expert Ryan Wilson has the club taking USC offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker in his latest simulation. While that would also meet a key need, they could be looking for a Mac Jones, Trey Lance, or Kyle Trask at this location. If the Bears go this route, they could mirror what the Miami Dolphins have done with Tua Tagovailoa this year and slowly bring the youngster with a reliable veteran also on the roster.
Whether it’s swinging for Garoppolo or picking a veteran’s hybrid / draft pick, either option holds promise at a position the Bears probably didn’t have. since a while.
Reshaping the offensive identity
While the staff were lacking for the Bears this season – especially under center as we pointed out above – Chicago’s attack under Matt Nagy must be looking intently in the mirror. They are ranked 31st in the NFL in third efficiency and part of that is because the coaching staff doesn’t put players on the court in a position to succeed.
This was fully displayed during last weekend’s loss to New Orleans, where Nagy’s offense failed to convert a third before coming out of the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter. In that same game, Nagy’s call-of-play seemed more fearful that the Saints would get the ball back before half-time than wanting to push for more points and possibly take the lead before the break, rolling out three consecutive games while still recovering the ball with 1:49. left and two timeouts in your pocket. They also struggled to get their best all-round weapon on offense at Allen Robinson until the second half, which undoubtedly helped them score just three points in meaningful action.
Whether it’s shuffling the gaming tasks again or changing the playbook itself, the Bears offense has had an identity crisis this year and if it bleeds in 2021, it doesn’t matter who is under. the center.
Bring back Allen Robinson
It probably should have been done a long time ago and now Robinson seems determined to see what the free market has to offer. That said, Chicago would have to do whatever it takes to be competitive in bringing back the star receiver as this attack is in desperate need of playmakers. Sure, they could place the franchise tag on Robinson, but that would open up a whole box of worms that displeases the wide receiver, who has just put up 102 catches, a career high.
Robinson has publicly spoken about his affinity for the city of Chicago and the Bears organization, so he would likely be open to a comeback and it would be in the club’s best interests to make that happen. If the team can’t, the franchise tag probably needs to be rolled out so the Bears arguably don’t lose their best player for nothing.
Make tough calls to help cap the situation
Chicago is not in the best position in terms of capitalization, ranking 20th in the league in available space this offseason, according to Spotrac. This can mean that some tough decisions have to be made to give the club more leeway as they build a base going forward. The Bears could create space by moving from corner Kyle Fuller (clears $ 11 million) and / or defensive tackle Akiem Hicks (could clear $ 10.5 million).
Not only would moves of this nature – albeit tough decisions – create more space, but Chicago could also gain some trumps in return and bring young people to the defensive side of the ball. Bringing in young players can help build a unit for the long haul, and with the Bears committing more than $ 41.3 million of their cap to linebackers Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn, they’ll need to find more affordable players in the industry. other places. The team may also be looking to move on from tight end Jimmy Graham, who would wipe $ 7 million from the cap.
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