Any Chicago Bears fan who regularly reads ESPN columns will know the name Bill Barnwell. While a respectable analyst when it comes to numbers and advanced stats, his bias hasn’t been hard to spot. Among the several people who cover the wider NFL, he has been among the most vocal with negative takes about the Bears. It seems like he has a legitimate distaste for the franchise. This is hardly anything new. Plenty of national pundits have made similar feelings clear over the years.
That is why it’s always interesting when such a person reverses course and showers the team with praise. Barnwell did that in his latest column. He details his rankings of every offensive skill group in the league from worst to best. There were some obvious teams at the top. San Francisco was #1, followed closely by Philadelphia, Miami, and Houston. What may shock people is he has Chicago nestled at #6, bolstered by their newfound wide receiver corps.
6. Chicago Bears
2023 rank: 17 | 2022 rank: 31
It has been only two years since the Bears were starting Velus Jones and Dante Pettis at wide receiver. Things have turned quickly. I’m not sure if Keenan Allen, D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze form the best trio of wide receivers a quarterback has had during a rookie season, but it can’t be far off. (Matt Leinart having Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Bryant Johnson and then Edgerrin James at running back in 2006 was pretty nice.) Odunze would be the most exciting wideout on a quarter of the league’s teams before ever playing a snap; here, he’s probably the No. 3 out of the gates…
…The Bears might not throw the ball around frequently enough to get all three guys the numbers they’re expecting. If two of these three wideouts live up to the hopes of fans in 2024, though, that’s just fine for Chicago. Cole Kmet also averaged just under 2.0 yards per route run last season, which is plenty efficient for a tight end.
One of the biggest criticisms about the franchise over the years was their constant unwillingness to change their ways. They’ve always been a team defined by great defense and running the ball. That worked fine in the 1980s, but the NFL has changed a lot since then. You don’t win these days without a quarterback and a capable passing attack. Go back and look at how they built around Jay Cutler, Mitch Trubisky, and Justin Fields for a reminder of such missteps. Caleb Williams is the first quarterback they’ve acquired who got the royal treatment immediately.
Keenan Allen arrived via trade. Rome Odunze came in as the 9th overall pick. Gerald Everett arrived to help back up Cole Kmet. Even running back D’Andre Swift has a proven track record as a weapon in the passing game. This offense isn’t just able to throw the ball. It is designed to. The Chicago Bears understand reality. If they can’t beat teams throwing the ball, they will never challenge for a championship. Time will tell if this group can live up to its potential, but the optimism is high.
