The Chicago Bears offense has long been the second-class citizen of the city it represents. While the franchise has produced an elite defense in almost every decade of its existence, the same can’t be said for the offensive side of the ball. There are many reasons that go into this. Of course, it starts with the quarterback position. The Bears have spent countless years trying to find one who can play at a top level, only to get saddled with mediocrity. Next is the lack of firepower. When your all-time leading receiver never eclipsed 6,000 yards in a career, that is a bad sign.
Last but not least is the coaching. No head coach or coordinator who came to Chicago ever had a stellar reputation for crafting offense. This is probably why the Bears have been top-10 in scoring only four times in the Super Bowl era. For an idea of what bad it’s been, the offense had failed to score five touchdowns or more in back-to-back games for 68 years, dating back to 1956. That drought finally came to an end on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars, where they put up 35 points after dropping 36 the week before.
It feels like GM Ryan Poles finally got everything right. He hired a head who, while not an offensive expert, understood the vital importance of developing a passing game. The lineup has been stacked with playmakers like D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet, and D’Andre Swift. Most importantly, they finally found a quarterback. Caleb Williams threw four touchdowns in the win over the Jaguars. He has now thrown seven touchdowns and only one interception over the past three games.
Despite a rough start to the season, things have coalesced into something exciting. People will argue the Bears have benefitted from a favorable schedule against bad defenses. That is true. However, this is hardly the first time in the past 68 years that has happened. Yet they never managed this feat once. The fact they did it this time is a clear indication things are pointed in the right direction. It was always felt if the offense could ever catch up to the defense, this team would be a Super Bowl contender.
Well, prepare yourselves.
