Bill Zimmerman: 9-7
The Bears continue to make strides under John Fox and Ryan Pace. They will make the John Fox ‘jump’ in year two and add three additional wins from 2014. Unfortunately, that jump still won’t be enough to get them into the playoffs.
The biggest strides this year will be on the defensive side of the ball. The Bears defense is a top 10 NFL unit this year and has a chance to become top 5. They have a linebacking corps that will play big in both the run and passing game. Their front three will also be stout with Akiem Hicks making strides and I expect Jonathan Bullard to unseat Mitch Unrein as the other starting DE within a few weeks. Eddie Goldman has slimmed down and is ready to make a major impact. The secondary will struggle at times, but the front seven will be strong enough that they will be able to cover their warts most of the time.
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Offensively, if the Bears can be average, that will be good enough. It’s tough to expect Jay Cutler to be anything more than he was last year with a new offensive coordinator. The running back by committee will miss Matt Forte at times and there are still question marks along the offensive line and at tight end. Josh Sitton will be a huge boost up front, but he can’t cure all the woes single-handedly.
I always felt the Bears were aiming for 2017 to be their big breakout season and it still looks like that’s the plan. The Bears will make strides this year, but not enough to placate all Bears fans. I hate to sound like a Cubs fan, but wait til next year. It could be something special.
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