The Chicago Bears underwent some major changes when it comes to their leadership. General manager Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy were both fired. Taking over in the front office is Ryan Poles, while Matt Eberflus is taking over as head coach.
There is some work to do when it comes to the roster, which Poles get underway fixing this offseason. Parting ways with some veterans to open up cap space to become players in free agency in the near future was smart. But, this team will only go as far as Justin Fields can take them.
Fields was the 12th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft as the Bears traded up with the New York Giants to select him. It cost them this year’s first-round pick, but there is optimism that Fields can become the franchise quarterback that Chicago has been seeking for a long time.
While he had a rough rookie season, Fields has the dual-threat ability that teams are looking for in their starting quarterbacks. The coaching staff did him no favors when it came to schemes and the supporting cast around him wasn’t great either.
Sometimes when a new regime takes over they will want to bring in their own guy to run the offense. But, that is not the case when it comes to Poles and Eberflus. Fields was likely a draw for the Chicago openings and Eberflus is confident the second-year jump will occur for the Ohio State product.
“I said last time in public that the development of him for the second year should be a big jump. It should be. That’s what we’re looking for. We’re looking for better technique, better fundamentals, better decision-making, better timing, everything.”
Improved play from the offensive line would go a long way to improving Fields performance in 2022. The Bears are still in need of a true No. 1, go-to receiver, but they did add some talent by bringing in Byron Pringle and Equanimeous St. Brown at the wide receiver position to complement Darnell Mooney.
With two second-round picks, the Bears could address their needs at wide receiver, as this is a deep, talented class. Making sure Fields has everything he needs to continue improving should be of the utmost importance to Chicago as he is the most important player on the roster for their future success.
