As we prepare for Saturday's preseason game between the Chicago Bears and the Denver Broncos at Mile High Stadium, we finally got our long anticipated good news on the Roquan Smith front: A resolution to the holdout situation has been reached.
The Bears and Smith agreed to terms at last, ending the nearly month-long holdout that saw Smith miss the Bears' entire training camp in Bourbonnais. But none of that matters anymore. Smith is in the fold, the Bears have their complete inside linebacking corps under contract, and we can finally move on and prepare for the Week 1 showdown at Lambeau Field.
With that, we reach into this week's Bears Mailbag. Thank you to everyone who submitted questions -- as always, we appreciate the participation!
One of the biggest things that Ryan Pace has done since taking over for GM is making the roster younger and focusing on speed. The Bears' roster before Pace was filled with aging veterans who'd left their primes and speed behind. Chicago now has plenty of players on both sides of the ball whose game speed matches their sprint speed. In general, on paper, the Bears are a much improved unit. And we've seen flashes of the new talent coming together in the three years plus years that Pace has been at the helm. For a summary, see this great tweet from Johnathan Wood of DaBearsBlog.
Pretty remarkable, right? But the reality is that this team is still largely unknown, whether that's because of injuries or scheme. For example, the offense has much newer, younger pieces, but until we see Matt Nagy's scheme in real games, it's hard to tell just how much *better* they are from the old players, because the only thing we learned during the John Fox era about offense was that they didn't have any receivers, and that Jordan Howard is in fact a star. On defense, the Bears are MUCH improved, and guys like Akiem Hicks, Eddie Goldman, Danny Trevathan, Kyle Fuller and Leonard Floyd are leading the turnaround. He's had some free agency whiffs for sure, and there are still a variety of unknowns. But the reality is that the impact of everything Pace has done will begin and end with Mitch Trubisky. I'm very excited about the offensive additions, such as Allen Robinson, Trey Burton, and Anthony Miller. But if Trubisky isn't good, the Bears are screwed. If he is good, the Bears could contend for and even go deep in the playoffs -- this year. So Pace's grade is Incomplete at the moment, but on paper I'd give him a B-. After this year, we'll know if it's really trending towards the D range or the A range.
It won't take very long, and I fully expect that Roquan Smith will be the Bears' Week 1 starting middle linebacker, alongside Danny Trevathan. Many reports said that Smith was in touch with Vic Fangio before and throughout the holdout, ensuring he was learning the defense and getting familiar with the scheme. And while he did miss training camp, Smith will have plenty of reps available in the next two preseason games to get caught up and get any rust worked out. Don't forget, he's been practicing at the joint practices with the Denver Broncos this week. So he's getting there. And he'll be ready for Week 1. I have faith in Nick Kwiatkoski, who is a very solid linebacker himself. So in case Smith isn't ready, or if they want to ramp him up slowly, the Bears will be in good hands.
I had them right at seven wins when I first took a look at the schedule. After the draft, I have them 8-8, as I really think Roquan Smith, James Daniels, and Anthony Miller are going to be amazing difference makers for this team. I don't think I've ever been so thrilled with the first three selections in a draft class before. And since you asked, here's my current set of weekly predictions: @Packers: L Seahawks: W @Cardinals: W Buccaneers: W @Dolphins: W Patriots: L Jets: W @Bills: L Lions: L Vikings: L @Lions: L @Giants: W Rams: L Packers: W @49ers: W @Vikings: L
It depends on what you mean by "unknown". Because I think there are three rookies that are going to become huge contributors this year -- the first three draft picks Pace made this year: Roquan Smith, James Daniels, and Anthony Miller. If you're asking about an UDFA kind of player or someone who is currently battling for a spot, keep your eye on Aaron Lynch. The Bears desperately need someone to step up across from Leonard Floyd and generate consistent pressure on the quarterback from the other OLB position. Lynch signed a one-year deal in the offseason, and has great skills as a pass rusher and can be productive, but is struggling with health. Isaiah Irving and sixth-round rookie Kylie Fitts are also battling for spots in the pass rushing rotation. But the Bears are counting on Lynch to turn his career around. If he stays healthy and things click for him, he has 12 sack potential. Wouldn't that be nice?
Currently, the strongest units on this team on paper are: Running back, wide receiver (surprise!), tight end, defensive line, inside linebacker, and cornerback. Safety and offensive line are probably average at this point. And the weakest unit is the outside linebacking unit, by far. Quarterback is completely up in the air. Like I said above, if Trubisky is good, this unit is good. If he gets injured or if he sucks, then the unit sucks. It's plain and simple. I'm not sure if I can really answer which unit will surprise as a strength or weakness since these are the current realities of the units. But I'd expect the wide receiving corps to be much better than anticipated, given they stay healthy. And I'd expect the OLB corps to be about as bad as expected. Why? Well, here's the entire truth: I'm about as giddy as one can get to watch Anthony Miller in real games. And I'm about as terrified as one can get to watch Isaiah Irving rush the passer in critical moments. Let's hope Miller proves me right and Irving proves me wrong.
