These Chicago Bears players could earn their first Pro Bowl nod in 2020.
The four-game decline from 2018 to 2019 left us with little to be positive about when it came to the Chicago Bears. But for all the confusion that was last season, Chicago did find a way to send five Pro Bowlers to the special game.
As if on cue, one of the preeminent talking points for Chicago Bears apologists like myself was that even though Chicago finished just 8-8, they were the thinnest of breaks away from a playoff-type season. Of their eight losses, five of them were by single-digits. And while on the surface, that may not appear to be worthy of a major discussion, the buzz surrounding its players and coaches changes tenfold.
For example, say just two things change: say Eddy Piñeiro connects on his field goal against the Los Angeles Chargers, and the Bears’ defense gets one more stop in London’s game against the Raiders. Chances are, we hold Matt Nagy to slightly-higher esteem if he’s riding the wave of consecutive 10-plus win seasons. The same goes for Mitchell Trubisky.
And to think of it on a different stratosphere — think about what that would mean for some of the lesser-known Chicago Bears. All of a sudden, it becomes a tad bit tougher to snub Allen Robinson from a well-deserved Pro Bowl nod, and the Bears’ name carries more weight.
The past can’t be changed, but this year’s version of the Chicago Bears has a genuine chance to rectify some of those snubs this season. On paper, you look at some of the talents on this roster, and you wonder how Vegas and talking heads are projecting this Bears team to finish as poorly as they do. In a best-case scenario, the Bears could compete with doubling its five Pro Bowl selections from a season ago.
And we’re well aware of the “usuals” — the Khalil Mack, Eddie Jackson-type players. But this Bears team also has tons of young talent worth keeping an eye out for. Their work will certainly be cut out for them in a competitive NFC, but here are three players that, if they break out as advertised, could be poised for their first appearance in Orlando’s special exhibition.