Week 1 is finally here, folks.
After a roller coaster offseason in which they replaced their coaching staff, revamped their pass-catching unit, landed three of the best players at their positions in the draft, and traded for one of the best EDGE players in all of football, the Chicago Bears head in to Green Bay to take on the Packers at Lambeau Field on Sunday Night Football.
Matt Nagy couldn’t ask for a bigger or better stage in which to debut.
The season officially kicked off on Thursday night, where the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles turned back the Atlanta Falcons with goal line stand after goal line stand. It’s the kind of defense the Bears hope to display — not just against the Packers, but all season.
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For all the excitement the Bears have generated both locally and even nationally — which I’m honestly shocked about — everything, and I mean everything, hinges on what happens with second-year quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Nagy was hired for his innovative ideas on offense and penchant for developing quarterbacks. And how Trubisky responds throughout the course of 16 games will dictate how this season goes.
Reasonable expectations would be to see Trubisky be a good game manager at the minimum, with some moments of greatness sprinkled in, as he progresses through his first year in Nagy’s offense. If he can be at least that, the Bears have enough talent to be playoff contenders. If he’s better than that, the Bears can make some legitimate noise IN the playoffs. But if he’s worse than that …
That being said, because it’s the beginning of a new season, and a new era, I have some predictions about how the 2018 season will go — at a player level and at a season outcome level.
Let’s dive right in. Comments or questions? Follow/Tweet me @DhruvKoul. Look forward to the conversation!
Key Offensive Player Stat Projections
Mitch Trubisky – 63% CMP, 3,750 yards, 7.3 YPA, 25 TD, 14 INT, 90.0 rating
Jordan Howard – 250 attempts, 1,150 yards, 4.6 YPA | 28 catches, 250 yards | 11 total TD
Tarik Cohen – 110 attempts, 540 yards, 4.9 YPA | 45 catches, 420 yards | 6 total TD
Trey Burton – 75 catches, 700 yards, 5 TD
Allen Robinson – 60 catches, 875 yards, 6 TD
Taylor Gabriel – 45 catches, 540 yards, 3 TD
Anthony Miller – 35 catches, 350 yards, 2 TD
Kevin White – 24 catches, 210 yards, 2 TD
Adam Shaheen – (assuming Week 6 return), 32 catches, 300 yards, 4 TD
Key Defensive Player Stat Projections
Khalil Mack – 18 TFL, 10.5 sacks, 3 FF, 1 FR, 1 INT
Leonard Floyd – 10 TFL, 6 sacks, 2 FF, 2 FR
Akiem Hicks – 14 TFL, 7 sacks, 2 FF, 1 FR
Eddie Goldman – 11 TFL, 5 sacks, 1 FF
Roquan Smith – 85 tackles, 1 FF, 2 FR, 1 INT
Danny Trevathan – 90 tackles, 1 FF, 1 FR, 2 INT
Kyle Fuller – 4 INT
Prince Amukamara – 2 INT
Eddie Jackson – 5 INT
Player Awards and Superlatives
MVP – Khalil Mack
Most Valuable Coach – Vic Fangio
Offensive POY – Jordan Howard
Defensive POY – Khalil Mack
Rookie of the Year – Roquan Smith
Surprise of the Year – Roy Robertson-Harris
Comeback POY – Allen Robinson
Most Improved POY – Mitch Trubisky (it better be)
Sneaky Good Addition of the Year – Cody Parkey
Best Moment of the Year – Beating Packers at Soldier Field
Disappointment of the Year – Losing at least two winnable games to one of the following teams: Cardinals, Jets, Bills, Dolphins, Giants
Final Win / Loss Record Projection
@Packers – L
Seahawks – W
@Cardinals – W
Buccaneers – W
@Dolphins – W
Patriots – L
Jets – W
@Bills – L
Lions – W
Vikings – L
@Lions – L
@Giants – L
Rams – L
Packers – W
@49ers – W
@Vikings – L
Final Record: 8-8 — Miss the playoffs, but a LOT of optimism for 2019.
