The Chicago Bears came into the 2023 offseason determined to find weapons to upgrade their offense around quarterback Justin Fields. They have succeeded in doing so, with one move grabbing all of the headlines.
Chicago was involved in a blockbuster trade with the Carolina Panthers centered around the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. They received four draft picks from the Panthers and wide receiver D.J. Moore, giving Fields a much-needed No. 1 option in the passing game.
With him and Chase Claypool in the lineup, along with Darnell Mooney, the wide receiver depth chart is vastly improved. The Bears also signed tight end Robert Tonyan to pair with Cole Kmet, giving Chicago one of the better skill position groups in the NFL heading into 2023 compared to having one of the most underwhelming in 2022.
Arguably the biggest loss that the team suffered offensively was running back David Montgomery. He signed a three-year deal with the Detroit Lions to join their backfield. But, the Bears didn’t waste time filling the void on their offense. They signed D’Onta Foreman away from the Panthers, which was named one of the top under-the-radar signings of the offseason.
Foreman took over the lead back role for the Panthers last season after they traded Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers. Healthy for every game for the first time in his career, Foreman turned in a career season.
He carried the ball 203 times for 914 yards and five touchdowns. While he doesn’t offer as much as Montgomery in the passing game, Foreman is a much more explosive running back, averaging 4.5 yards per carry last season compared to 4.0 for Montgomery. Playing in the same backfield as Fields should open up even more holes for Foreman to operate as well.
There weren’t many running backs more efficient than Foreman in 2022, which bodes well for a Bears team that loves to run the football. According to NFL Next Gen Stats via ESPN, Foreman gained more rushing yards than expected on 49 percent of his carries, which was the second-best rate among running backs that had at least 100 carries.
