By the look of things, it certainly feels like the Chicago Bears offense got better. A lot better. True, it wasn’t that difficult. They had the worst passing game in the league in 2017. Their saving grace came through the talents of running backs Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen. GM Ryan Pace knew if things were going to turn around, he had to find weapons in the passing game.
To his credit, this is a job he accomplished. Over the course of a few days in March, the Bears added three productive pass catchers to their arsenal. Wide receiver Allen Robinson came up from Jacksonville. Speed threat Taylor Gabriel joined him from Atlanta. Last but not least, gadget tight end Trey Burton arrived from Philadelphia.
Together with second-year tight end Adam Shaheen and a (hopefully) returning Cameron Meredith, quarterback Mitch Trubisky has gone from no options to several. Most of praise Pace for what he’s done. They feel the Bears are ready to roll on that side of the ball. However, at least one expert claims they haven’t finished the job yet.
Chicago Bears offense still missing an upgrade on the offensive line
NFL.com columnist Jeremy Bergman sees what almost everybody does. The Bears are emulating the blueprint that the Los Angeles Rams used to rebuild their offense around Jared Goff in 2017. So far they’ve followed the steps almost to the letter. However, he points out there is still one key part they haven’t done.
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“Chicago has since surrounded The Truth with his very own Robert Woods (Allen Robinson), Sammy Watkins (Taylor Gabriel) and Cooper Kupp (Trey Burton). But where will Ryan Pace find his version of Andrew Whitworth, a bacon-saving offensive lineman?
Chicago will keep its fingers crossed that the top of the draft is as QB-heavy as advertised, and somehow Quenton Nelson, arguably the draft’s top talent, falls to No. 8. If not, it’s BPA for a young roster looking to forge its own identity — as long as it somewhat resembles the Rams’.”
One thing that Bergman overlooks is that Whitworth is a tackle. Nelson is a guard. Their impacts on an offensive line are different. The odds of Nelson falling to #8 are slim anyway. Is there a possible Whitworth solution at tackle for the Bears to consider if he doesn’t? Ask around the draft community and they might have a surprising answer.
In @SI_PeterKing MMQB he had this from @Gil_Brandt that made me think about the #Bears: "Biggest surprise in the top 10: Notre Dame tackle Mike McGlinchey. He'll go in the top 10." Bears have his o-line coach and could use a Bobbie Massie upgrade.
— Danny Parkins (@DannyParkins) April 9, 2018
Mike McGlinchey resembles Whitworth in a number of ways. He’s big, strong, nasty and more athletic than he gets credit for. He was an effective left tackle for a top program and personally developed by new Bears offensive line coach Harry Hiestand. Most believe he’d have a bright future at right tackle in the NFL, making him the perfect solution to the Bobby Massie problem they have.
Certainly something Ryan Pace will have to consider carefully.
