The Chicago Bears 2018 off-season is not over. There is still work for them to do including possible free agency moves and the waiver wire to come in August. That said the major actions are concluded with the ending of the NFL draft. It’s this time where taking stock of things is generally safe to do, determining the likely course the team will take in the next few months.
One common vocation is a stock report of sorts. Figuring out which people benefitted the most from the work done and those who lost a lot from it. “Winners” and “losers” are the accepted terms in this situation. The Bears are no different. Not everybody was going to turn out happy from what they’ve done. It was all for the betterment of the team. So which names ended up on the favorable side of things?
Winners:
Mitch Trubisky
If this wasn’t the most obvious to people then they have no business following the Bears. Everything about this off-season since January has been about Trubisky. Pace is doing any and all in his power to make the young quarterback a success. He hired keen offensive mind Matt Nagy as head coach. He signed receivers Allen Robinson and Taylor Gabriel in free agency then drafted Anthony Miller in the second round.
At that same time, he added a capable center in James Daniels to improve protection. This offense is drastically better than it was a year ago from the coaching staff down to the talent on the field. All Trubisky has to do is play up to his potential and things will take off.
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Jordan Howard
The addition of Daniels on the offensive line wasn’t just meant to help Trubisky. One man who may benefit even more is Jordan Howard. Daniels is known best for his run blocking prowess at Iowa where they posted at least one game of 300+ yards rushing in each of his final two seasons there. Pairing him with Cody Whitehair and a healthy Kyle Long under the tutelage of line coach Harry Hiestand is almost cheating. To say nothing of the likelihood Howard won’t see as many eight-man boxes as he did in 2017. Yeesh.
Aaron Lynch
There was at least one person thrilled with the Bears’ lack of investment at edge rusher this year. That was their free agent signing Aaron Lynch. This oversight is the lone criticism hovering over Pace. Right now Lynch is projected to start across from Leonard Floyd. People certainly hope he can regain the old form that he flashed under Vic Fangio in San Francisco when he had six sacks as a rookie. Still, this has the uncomfortable whiff of a last resort situation. Maybe sixth rounder Kyle Fitts surprises, but that feels unlikely.
Vic Fangio
The draft began with an announcement that the Bears defensive coordinator had sunk a hole-in-one during a gold session. That had to be a good omen. Just over an hour later the team saw Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith fall right into their lap at #8. He has the same potential as a Patrick Willis who starred under Fangio for years in San Francisco. It wasn’t just him though.
Chicago made a number of quality moves. They retained Kyle Fuller and Prince Amukamara at cornerback. They added Bilal Nichols and Kyle Fitts as quality depth options at defensive line and edge rusher. Then they stockpiled some underrated undrafted free agents in the secondary. Don’t forget the reunion with Lynch as well.
Losers:
Kevin White
For a moment in time, it looked like Kevin White might get one more true chance to fulfill his potential as a first round pick after the Bears let Cameron Meredith walk as a free agent. That dream died when the team started adding receivers at a fast clip. Bennie Fowler and Marlon Brown came in as cheap depth options. In the draft, the Bears secured Miller in the second round and then, just for one last kick in the gut, grabbed Javon Wims out of Georgia in the seventh.
Coach Nagy may be singing the praises of White today but it’s going to take a drastic turn of events for the young receiver to ever become a factor in the Bears offense now.
Hroniss Grasu
If there’s one man who feels the same pain as White, it’s Hroniss Grasu. Another 2015 pick who looked like a future long-term starter. An untimely injury early in 2016 has basically ruined his career. After he tore his ACL, Whitehair ascended to the center spot. Since then Grasu hasn’t been able to get back on the field except in reserve duty. His lack of versatility to play guard is proving a huge disadvantage. Now the Bears have Eric Kush and Daniels, who are capable of playing both. His time in Chicago may be over.
Nick Kwiatkoski
It looked for a short time like Nick Kwiatkoski was ready to assume to the starting inside linebacker job when Jerrell Freeman was cut and Christian Jones signed in Detroit. It’s something many had expected to happen when he was first drafted. Seems the Bears didn’t share that same plan. Kwiatkoski became an afterthought the moment Smith was drafted in the first round. Word is the Bears might move him to the hybrid role Jones filled last year. While he’s the primary backup, his dreams of starting are dashed.
NFC North secondaries
Anybody who paid attention saw that both the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers paid ample attention to the cornerback position in the draft. It’s not a coincidence. They aren’t blind. They see perfectly well what the Bears are building in the receiving corps. Robinson? Gabriel? Miller? Adam Shaheen? Trey Burton? There is suddenly a wealth of pass-catching talent at their disposal and it won’t be the useless Mike Glennon or streaky Jay Cutler pulling the trigger. They have an accurate, athletic upstart in Trubisky.
This passing game is no longer a spare wheel as has been the case for so many years. If things come together as hoped, it could be the strength of the entire team.
