2023 Chicago Bears roster

    A week away from watching the Bears take the field to their first game of the new season, what did Ryan Poles and Co. manage to build for this years roster? With free agency signings all cooled down, preseason over, rosters cut down to 53 players, wavier claims made, practice squads filled and last minute trades done, I can say that this years Bears look, well pretty much average really, its better than last year but its still doesn't look made to compete in January, still there's plenty to look ahead for.

QB - Justin Fields, Tyler Bagent

   Bagent is a refreshing surprise to have as the rookie backup to Fields, an UDFA no less, he gave a very solid performance in this preseason and I agree he earned his spot on the roster to learn as much as he can from Fields and the coaching staff hopefully from the bench for the whole season, just having young promising talent at the QB positions is something the Bears have missed for decades along with a good starting QB which is what is expected form Fields form this season forward. Its finally time to see Fields develop to the elite QB many Bears fans believe he can be, Poles made the move of the offseason by acquiring D.J. Moore from the Panthers, giving Fields a true and much needed WR1 a la Stefon Diggs for Josh Allen in Buffalo, Moore is expected to continue showing how dangerous he is with the ball in his hands and not rely completely in his QB to throw him open, Moore shows good route running to separate from his defender, all Fields has to do it build a trust and place the ball in Moore's catch radius and let him do the rest. As a result I expect Fields to grow as a passer and get the confidence he needs to better his mental clock and understand what throws he can make by understanding what is open in the NFL.

RB - Khalil Herbert, D'Onta Forman, Roschon Johnson, Travis Homer, Khari Blasingame

   The Bears build a very good running back by committee group, if Hebert gets better as a pass blocker he will manage to take more snaps from the other guys, but Forman and Johnson are eager to help in that area and can pound the ball very well, both are excellent bruising backs to soften Dlines and are decent as short range receivers. Homer is no slouch but will be more counted on in special teams. Blasingame I though he might not be on the team due to the good play Robert Burns showed in preseason games, I was glad he was retained via practice squad because if Blasingame starts to underperform I want Burns called up quick.

WR - D.J. Moore, Darnell Mooney, Chase Claypool, Equanimeous St. Brown, Velus Jones Jr., Tyler Scott, Trent Taylor

   Honestly, I felt a lot better about this group a few weeks ago than I do now, I have no problem with the starting trio of Moore, Mooney and Claypool which I believe are top 15 in the league, but the depth is not ideal, there isn't anyone that would make me feel at ease to keep the ship on course if either Moore or Mooney go down, not even Claypool. St. Brown and Velus are more valuable to special teams and as run blockers but are very average receivers, the verdict is still ongoing for Velus but has shown very little to have trust in him, Scott looks to be still learning the playbook which is reasonable, rookies rarely come out of the gate to really contribute on gameday in their first year. Poles gamble on Velus and Scott to be speedster WRs that can contribute as returners is not working as of now, there is still time but the lack of early contribution by both these guys is costing the Bears a roster spot given to newcomer Taylor just because of his experience as a return man, getting Taylor was important to have someone of trust for the job but needing him was not part of the plan. Hopefully either Velus or Scott can get things rolling making Taylor indispensable and have a roster spot for another skill group that needs the development. Right now, early as it may be for him to evaluate, Velus is in need to find his role on this team in a hurry.

TE - Cole Kmet, Robert Tonya, Marcedes Lewis

   Here's hoping Kmet can keep improving as he has done. I expect better play form Tonya than what I watched in the preseason which was not promising. Lewis I understand he was brought to be an extra blocker and decoy but hasn't performed on the field yet so its a wait and see if him on the field isn't a big tell for defenses. A bit light on the depth chart at this position and nothing on the practice squad to have in the loop so Im a bit concerned about this group.

OL - Braxton Jones, Cody Whitehair, Lucas Patrick, Nate Davis, Darnell Wright, Larry Borom, Ja'Tyre Carter, Dan Feeney

   One more year that I'm disappointed in Poles to not have this unit built to be at least a good group given his expertise by being himself a former Olineman and help build a good Oline in Kansas City. Injuries are not planed but teams try to prepare for them as best as possible, the Bears have this issue with Teven Jenkins, Doug Kramer, Patrick and Whitehair getting hurt in camp, all interior guys and three of them are the Center option for the team, this led to the trade for Feeney who I don't believe was brought to start but to get him ready with the playbook if ever he is needed at C/G if Jenkins cant return or someone else get injured. I expected Poles to go get one Center in this years draft and as of now the outcomes tell me he should have really considered picking one. This is not a unit that reflects confidence, Davis is believed to have some issues in camp either with coaches or health or both, add in the injuries that prevented the starting unit to even have one of the three preseason games to prep up, there's nothing that shows this group is ready to perform day one of the season, From want I have seen and heard that benefits Fields better when being pass protected is he can absorb Tackle mistakes or lost battles against EDGEs easier as long as the front three have control of the pocket, right now the Tackles are better set for success with Jones, Wright and Borom than the Guard an Center positions being banged up and have no continuity with the players getting to play one position, instead they have been forced to be shuffled around to make ends meet. Long story short, its going to take a while to know if the Oline will be good enough to protect Fields or succeed in the run game they want to play. Having Roy Mbaeteka stick around on the practice squad gives me a good feeling.

DL - DeMarcus Walker, Justin Jones, Andrew Billings, Yannick Ngakoue, Rasheem Green, Gervon Dexter, Zacch Pickens, Dominic Robinson, Khalid Kareem

   It pains me that the Bears have issues on both sides of the line of scrimmage, I am a believer that the team starts with the QB and then you build inside out starting with the players nearest the LOS. This team looks to be built the other way around, I might me wrong and Poles and Co. are just one year away to fixing this team but its probably going to show awfully clear that right now it still has major holes. The pass rush is a mystery as of right now, Ngakoue and even teammate Kareem can be said got singed because of it and he hasn't played enough to show if he is enough to be at least a band aid, the other players for the EDGE position are more run defenders than rushers and the group might need this trait because of the interior group. Jones and Billings can get the job done but they cant play the whole game, enter the rookies which in all fairness they are rookies and will have to deal with the growing pains, how much will it take? How much help they can get by the EDGES and the revamped linebacker group brought this year to stop the run? they have a chance to make some mistakes and not cost the team some wins but can they limit them enough? Guess we will find out, both had some flashes in the preseason but also showed how raw they are with what this coaching staff want them to do. Having back Travis Bell on the practice squad is big news, he showed some good power in the preseason as a NT, would like to see more play from him in time.

LB - T.J. Edwards, Tremaine Edmunds, Jack Sanborn, Noah Sewell, Dylan Cole

   There's talent in this group no doubt, Edwards is a thumper and will help the run defense a lot. Edmunds can move and has the size to be a menace in pass coverage, he looked shaky in run support in the preseason but it might be rust by not playing enough, hoping this is the case because in Buffalo he showed he can bring the pain to RBs. Sanborn and Sewell are good depth pieces. I like this group to help the DL get better. Good choice in bringing Micah Baskerville to the practice squad.

CB - Jaylon Johnson, Tyrique Stevenson, Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Jones, Terrell Smith, Josh Blackwell

   I like what Stevenson brings to the field as a physical corner with good cover skills, he might be lacking top speed but he doesn't quit the play. I was impressed with Gordons willingness to throw his body to the ball carrier and being near the play to get the shots in, it will be awesome to see him do this consistently, clearly he could be the definition of the HITS principles Eberflus tries to install in his players. Jones, Blackwell and rookie Smith bring good depth to the group, luckily they will provide the line with an extra second or two to get to the QB though it would be even better If it was the other way around, some good pass rush that hurries bad throws I believe would result in more picks with these guys

S - Eddie Jackson, Jaquan Brisker, Elijah Hicks, Quindell Johnson

   I would feel a lot better if Brisker was on the practice field more, seems he will be counted on in the upcoming game so hopefully he is good enough to go and has better understanding of the game plan. My worries with Jackson are time, he is very important to this defense and he is reaching an age that might result in a decrease of skill, the window appears to be opening for the Bears to be one of the elite teams, but if Jackson starts to regress in the upcoming years its going to be hard and a need to find someone else with his skill set, its still in the air what Hicks and newcomer Johnson are able to do if they have to sub in but don't believe is near what Jackson  brings to the defense.

K - Cairo Santos, P - Trenton Gil, LS - Patrick Scales

   Santos and Gil keep showing consistency and that is all you want from your kickers. I like Scales, he makes me laugh.

   Poles is waiting to see if the pieces are falling in place to be sure he has enough good players before going nuts in free agency and trades to build the best team possible, I get it, what really bugs me is that I cant feel confident this team can beat Green Bay in week one, its all up in the air, there's too many questions with the OL and DL to be sure that they can be competitive at best, seems they will have to rely on Fields once more to make magic happen and have a shot, last season this wasn't enough because the defense would break and let the others teams offense just run through them, this time they are more upgraded in all areas, it will be easier for this defense to maintain a lead rather than to give the offense the ball back for them to pull off a comeback because of the possible lack of run defense. One hopes that nearing November there are flashes of improvement and consistency of players in their primary roles, still what fans will have their eyes glued to is how Fields does on each and every play.