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Chicago Bears: 5 Reasons they’re NFC North sleepers in 2018

By Cody Williams

CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 24: Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears warms up prior to the game against the Cleveland Browns at Soldier Field on December 24, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by David Banks/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 24: Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears warms up prior to the game against the Cleveland Browns at Soldier Field on December 24, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by David Banks/Getty Images) /
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The Chicago Bears would like to forget about last season, and making noise in the NFC North in the 2018 season would sure help them do so.

Few franchises throughout the NFL hold the historical clout that the Chicago Bears can boast. They’re a staple in football culture with countless legends of the game having passed through the Windy City. Unfortunately, this is also a team that has fallen on some hard times of late. Yet, their rebuild is finally starting to take some shape.

General manager Ryan Pace has been criticized at times throughout his tenure with the Bears, and for good reason at times. But when look at his recent moves and the big picture, it’s clear that things could turn around for this team sooner rather than later. In fact, you could make the argument that things could take a big turn starting with the 2018 season.

And that’s what I’m going to do — make that argument. Here’s why you shouldn’t count out the Bears as NFC North sleepers this year.

5. Year 2 of Mitchell Trubisky

The argument could (rightly) be made that the Bears had no business start Mike Glennon at quarterback in 2017 after they traded up to the No. 2 pick in the draft to select Mitchell Trubisky out of North Carolina. They didn’t though, but it ultimately didn’t take long for the coaches to realize that they had to put the former Tar Heel in under center. Unfortunately for Trubisky, he wasn’t in a great position.

With injuries on the offensive line and at skill positions — in addition to a general lack of talent at wide receiver — the Bears young quarterback wasn’t in a great spot to find success as a rookie. What has to bring optimism to fans in Chicago though is that Trubisky still managed to show flashes of what he could be in spite of this.

Numerous times throughout the year, he would make great throws or plays that would ultimately be botched by his pass-catchers. What’s more, he showed great accuracy and the ability to make things happen when plays broke down. For a young player at this position to already be doing that is something special and to be excited about.

Now with a year and several starts under his belt, we should see progression from Trubisky in terms of his skills. When you then pair that with the fact that the situation around him as a whole is better, we could truly see the second-year quarterback make the leap towards being a star in this league.

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