The roster seems to be set for this first week of the 2022 season, one could say Ryan Poles didn't stop working on the roster until the final minute, even now he is still checking out some FAs with trial workouts and is already starting working on the future prospects by attending this seasons college games personally, no doubt this man and his team is dedicated. Obviously this years roster is filled with new faces but it doesn't looks half bad and the way they played this preseason, especially the defense, doesn't resemble the same fight the previous team had, this team emanates energy.
QB -J. Fields, T. Siemian
Justin Fields is in command now no questions asked, first two preseason games looked rocky and then the offense exploded against the Chiefs on their third preseason game. Needles to say I got excited until I watched Kurt Warner's analysis on the game where he saw some hesitation on Fields decision making, I do agree he did hesitate but, as Warner stated, when Fields makes up his mind he looks top notch, he has the overall tools to be a menace as a QB and Luke Getsy can help him like he has been doing by bringing Fields slowly and steady with his playbook that has shown until now that it does utilize Fields strengths. Trevor Siemian looked good and is a steady backup. I didn't like the decision to not keeping a rookie on the PS to develop, instead Nathan Peterman was signed for stability or some other strange reason.
There is still plenty of work to be done to say Fields is legit, he no doubt has the tools and just need to refine the mental part of the game, looks like he has the right coaches for him to take the big leap, his situation this time around looks much better, he might still be missing talent around him but if he progresses, the young core of players around him just might follow suit.
RB - D. Montgomery, K. Herbert, T. Ebner
David Montgomery got healthy and is back again looking ready to roll some defenders over. Montgomery is a very important player to this team who maybe isn't one of the greats but is good at everything he does, he can establish the pace of a game with his running or get the defense off guard catching the ball, even without the ball he can make a play by blocking and giving Fields time. Khalil Herbert is a good change of pace back but so is Trestan Ebner who showed really good plays and had a better performance as a pass catcher in the preseason and wouldn't surprise me if he takes snaps from Herbert, ultimately the one that shows better blocking skills will be given the nod more often.
One more season of solid RBs, as long as Montgomery starts, either Herbert or Ebner are more than serviceable backs that can carry some of the load, this year these guys get a little bit of help to get a chance to be more in the spotlight.
FB - K. Blasingame, J. Tonges
Hey we got FBs! Alright! About time we got serious about the heavy run scheme. Khari Blasingame resembles a more all around FB that can be a shorts pass catching threat while Jake Tonges on the other hand is more of a weapon that is capable of blocking but is still a wait and see how good he can be and how much will these guys be used, still its very fun to know that this Bears team will try to mow down opposing DLs with heavy personnel more often.
Too new to know how good these guys are with Blasingame injured most of the offseason and Tonges not participating that much in games but they will surely open up the playbook when they are on the field, establishing the run will always be a good thing for the QB.
WR - D. Mooney, B. Pringle, V. Jones Jr., D. Pettis, E. St. Brown, I. Smith-Marsette
Darnell Mooney returns as the established favorite pass catcher Fields has worked with, with him are players that have two things in common, they are unproven young talents and they are fast. Aside from Velus Jones Jr., the rest are coming from other teams that played backup roles coming from the bench and should be hungry to prove they belong in the starting line up. Byron Pringle and Dante Pettis can move and create separation, Equanimeous St. Brown has the length to be a red zone threat and a mismatch player, second year player Ihmir Smith-Marsette and rookie Jones are agile players and fight off tackles for hard extra yards given their experience as returners. Only other player missing is N'Keal Harry who was placed on short IR and could return in 4 weeks, he would bring more speed and size like St. Brown.
Its a good young core of players but not the names you could guarantee success on. Like most of this team, the talent is there and it could benefit from the scheme and the QBs performance.
TE - C. Kmet, R. Griffin, T. Wesco
I remember when the Bears had 10 TEs in one point of the previous offseason, things have drastically changed and it shows in this years TE group composed of only three members, well maybe four if you count Tonges here. Returning Cole Kmet is looking set to have a break out year with two seasons of experience in his belt, no more Jimmy Graham to steal his red zone opportunities and I don't believe Ryan Griffin and Trevon Wesco will interfere, although Griffin did catch a TD pass on the last preseason game, I expect both of them especially Wesco to open lanes for Montgomery and the other RBs.
No shiny offensive weapons here just your average mauling TEs that fight for every inch, if Kmet can be the safety blanket and red zone target Fields will need, that would be plenty to achieve.
OL - B. Jones, C. Whitehair, L. Patrick, T. Jenkins, L. Borom, J. Carter, S. Mustipher, A. Leatherwood, R. Rieff
This group has been the story teller for a couple of years now, the poor schemed and developed Oline has tortured the likes of two top drafted rookie QBs, now with a players GM taking the helm this took a turn for the best. Braxton Jones, the 5th round rookie, could easily make or break this season, he has made huge strides on his development according to his coaches and has proved it by getting himself the starting LT position which isn't and shouldn't be an easy decision to make. Returning second year players Teven Jenkins and Larry Borom will command the right side of the line, Jenkins at RG is what the doctor ordered, the position needed a big nasty player back at that spot. Borom did enough to convince the new regime he deserved to remain as the RT. Cody Whitehair will stay put where he can do the most damage at LG and if the Bears are lucky enough they will have Lucas Patrick ready to take the C spot, nothing against Sam Mustipher who showed some good improvement on these preseason games but I would like to see what the Bears have in Patrick who is now back from injury which took him out all offseason. Its a good sign and a bold move to go young with the starting unit, Poles did what he had to do and brought in veteran competition to the group and the young players responded by not relinquishing their spots, even with the line mostly ready to start the season, Poles added Alex Leatherwood to see if the coaches can bring out his talent that made him a high draft prospect. In his way, Poles demonstrated that he gets how important the Oline is for a team, even more so for one with a young QB.
There will be learning curves for this group along the way this season but even so I do expect them to battle it out with the best and give Fields a fighting chance.
DL - R. Quinn, J. Jones, A. Blackson, T. Gipson, A. Muhammad, M. Pennel Jr., A. Watts, D. Robinson, K. Jonathan
No more Khalil Mack, the experiment could be considered a failure and Poles took the decision to move on and look to the future by trading Mack for a 2nd round pick that could potentially turn out to be a stud, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Right now Robert Quinn is the best pure rusher on the team but a good one none the less, Al-Quadin Muhammad is slated to be opposite of Quinn on the depth chart but will most likely be sharing snaps with upcoming vet Travis Gipson, both bring run defense and some pass rush moves to quicken the QBs decision making, so there is depth at the position without even mentioning rookie Dominique Robinson who is big, strong and fast but still very raw, gives the DE group good rotation depth. No more Akiem Hicks will be even hard to replace, Angelo Blackson and recently signed Armon Watts come in to try and fill in some immense shoes, next to them will be Justin Jones and veteran Mike Pennel who showed some good plays against the backups on preseason games.
This group for years was once the core force of the defense, now its one more piece of the defensive puzzle.
LB - R. Smith, N. Morrow, M. Adams, J. Sanborn, S. Weatherford
Roquan smith didn't get his paycheck, it will have to wait a bit longer, some more special plays could change Poles mind, possibly. Smith and Nick Morrow could make some noise at LB this year, Morrow showed to be a good tackler and plays with high energy which I believe Matt Eberflus looks for in his players, I don't know who will play SAM but it will probably be Matthew Adams who is a serviceable LB, who I am most interested to see are the rookies Jack Sanborn and Sterling Weatherford. Sanborn was a preseason hero who was all over the place making plays against the backups but still showed lots of promise, Weatherford snagged from the waiver wire could be a big steal, big SS converted to LB equals a quick tackling machine with vision and agility, both will contribute at ST immediately.
Young and hungry group that can be a pleasant surprise that can help the DL this time around.
CB - J. Johnson, K. Vildor, K. Gordon, L. Jackson, J. Jones, J. Blackwell
Once the Achilles heel of the 2021 season now could be a strength. Poles upgraded this group with his two highest draft picks this year and could end being game changers for this defense, first is Kyle Gordon who was viewed as the CB to be opposite Jaylon Johnson but Eberflus placed him at NB be it by design or necessity, still he looks the part and if he thrives there he could take any type or WR, still I would consider moving him outside permanently once they see Thomas Graham play when he returns from injury hopefully soon. For now we get Kindle Vildor to try once more to be CB2, honestly him and Lamar Jackson didn't look half bad playing that spot at preseason, the coaching and/or the scheme just might have made them better at it, fingers crossed.
Honestly I thought this unit would look better until I saw Gordon at NB, even so they do look better than last year, still this unit will have to make due with the other groups on defense to make it work.
S - E. Jackson, J. Brisker, D. Houston-Carson, D. Cruikshank, E. Hicks
Getting Jaquan Brisker to help Eddie Jackson go back to being a deepfield safety is just what he needed, see if he can become the Eddie of old because time is running out for Jackson to be the playmaker he once showed he is capable of being. Brisker looks like an all around good safety that can roam the field and come down the line and help the front seven stuff the run. DeAndre Houston-Carson, Dane Cruikshank and Elijah Hicks will crush it as SP players but most importantly they are versatile and can be aligned as S or CB in Nickle, Dime and Quarter formations to cover speed or big TEs.
Jackson and Brisker complete a defense that doesn't have a particularly solid group but together can accomplish the goal of being a very decent defensive unit.
SP - C. Santos, T. Gill, P. Scales
Cairo Santos and Patrick Scales return to hopefully repeat another good season. The new leg in town flashed at the preseason with regularly good placed punts, Trenton Gill the last man drafted in 2022 makes Poles first draft look like a stroke of genius.
Some intriguing players got signed back to the PS before already mentioned Graham Jr. who I think will get moved up once healthy, T Kellen Diesch could be a great waiver steal, I wanted the Bears to draft him. DE Sam Kamara stick with the team for now, he showed good plays in the preseason and believe it was a tough decision to stick with him or Robinson on the 53 man roster. LB DeMarquies Gates has gone a long way to get where he is and showed it on the field, its good to have him aboard. G/C Dieter Eiselen I thought could have beaten Mustipher for the backup C position but didn't happen, its good to have another option stashed if necessary. DT Trevon Coley is an intriguing project and showed it at preseason.
The inclusion of a FB, blocking TEs along with bringing WR known for their capable blocking skills and even the line being more efficient at run blocking makes it somewhat obvious to expect that this coaching staff will try very hard to establish the run, even Fields can contribute at this plan. Both Eberflus and Getsy had very good running schemes in placed on their previous teams, it could well be a similar philosophy like what the 49ers like to do, who will coincidentally will be the Bears first opponent. The 49ers have been a very stable team for the last 3 years or so with a bruising run game and tough defense, their secondary looks somewhat suspect with some new faces but the front seven is top tier led by Nick Bosa and Fred Wagner. It will be a challenge for the young Bears Oline but I still remember when Borom played a good game against Bosa, Jones could very well do a similar job. The 49ers could have the upper hand just by experience but there is one new piece in play, Trey Lance will be QB for the niners and can easily represent a double edge sword, he has a massive arm and agility to spare but his accuracy has been questionable, if the Bears the offense can get rolling and score early so the defense can force Lance to beat them, they might have a good chance to get the upset, I can see it happening and if it does, then Poles has this team moving in the right direction.
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