The 2022 season was a rough one overall for the Chicago Bears. After starting the season off by winning two out of their first three games, they went 1-13 the rest of the way. Chicago ended the season on a 10-game losing streak, earning the No. 1 overall pick in the process as the Houston Texans won their season finale against the Indianapolis Colts.
There is a lot of work to be done with this roster as the Bears weren’t competitive in games down the stretch of the season. The defense needs a ton of work as they finished last in points allowed and 29th in yardage.
Offensively, the team has to be happy about the development of quarterback Justin Fields. The strides that he made this season despite being surrounded by arguably the weakest group of skill position players and pass catchers in the league are truly impressive. Not to mention, the offensive line was also troublesome throughout the season.
Despite that, Fields led the most explosive rushing offense in the NFL in 2022. He fell just short of the single-season rushing record for a quarterback, finishing with 1,143 yards. Had Fields not missed two games because of injury, the record likely would be his.
Along with Fields, the Bears also received excellent production from David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert. Montgomery gained 801 yards on the season, while Herbert rounded out the trio with 731.
On the season, Chicago finished with 3,014 rushing yards, which was 294 clear of the second-place Baltimore Ravens. The most drastic difference between the two, however, is the fact that the Ravens are a playoff team and the Bears finished with the worst record in the NFL.
That performance has landed them in their own category. No team has ever led the league in rushing yards while finishing with the worst record until the 2022 Bears accomplished it.
The NFL is as much of a passing league as ever as teams are airing the ball out more and more. Having a competent running game is still important, but if the Bears are going to really take strides, they have to commit to upgrading and rebuilding around Fields beginning this offseason.
