Chicago Bears: Can they be next year’s Eagles?

Despite finishing in last place, the Chicago Bears have a strong defense and a young quarterback. That sounds a lot like last year’s Philadelphia Eagles.

It’s been a long time since the Chicago Bears had any sustained success in the NFL.  They recently finished at the bottom of the NFC North for the fourth straight year and have won 10 or more games just five times in the past 26 seasons. Hell, even the Cleveland Browns have accomplished that a couple of times in that span. Things may be looking up, though.

Despite finishing 2017 with a 5-11 record, the Bears defense was among the league’s best. They were in the top-10 in both points allowed and yards allowed, all while playing the NFL’s toughest schedule, according to Pro Football Reference. In fact, Chicago’s Defensive SRS (a measure of a team’s defense, taking factors such as opponents into account) was the second-best in the NFC.

The Bears’ offense, however, was a different story. That unit accounted for just 26 touchdowns, tied for the second-fewest in football. They did, however, get 1,122 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns — both league highs among non-playoff teams — from their 23-year old running back, Jordan Howard.

And though their rookie quarterback, Mitch Trubisky, was understandably inconsistent, his numbers closely mirrored the first-year statistics of another recent No. 2 overall pick: Carson Wentz.

Last year, Wentz and the Philadelphia Eagles were in last place in their division, but they had a solid defense in place. This year, Wentz led Philly to a 10-2 record before tearing his ACL. At the time of his injury, his yards per attempt had increased to 7.5.  Wentz’s TD percentage of 7.5 percent led the NFL and his INT rate had dropped to just 1.6 percent. And that 79.3 QB rating from last year? It spiked to 101.9 in 2017.

Next: Kirk Cousins: 7 Landing spots after Alex Smith trade

Can Trubisky match Wentz’s improvement in Year 2? That’s unlikely, of course. But very few people had the Eagles reaching this year’s Super Bowl. With a formidable defense behind him and a year under his belt, look for the Bears’ young QB to lead his team back to the playoffs soon.