How the Bears Can Improve in 2025
There are some very good sports teams right here in the Quad Cities for fans to get behind. Whether it is the Bandits or the Storm, there is top-quality action right on our doorsteps. That will be a relief for many in the area who have endured another season of disappointment from the Chicago Bears.
Not all Quad Cities residents will be Bears fans but there will be a fairly healthy section of the population who gave up on hoping for a playoff spot months ago. As yet another Super Bowl comes around without any local involvement, we thought we would take a look at how the organization might improve in the offseason.
There won’t be many local sports fans taking to the Illinois betting apps to back the Bears for Super Bowl glory next season. But even just a gradual improvement might help, as Bears fans everywhere lament yet another lackluster year.
New Head Coach
Most Bears will tell you that there is no way that 2025 could not be better than what has come before, Giving Matt Eberflus a third year as head coach turned out to be the monumental mistake that many thought it would be. Even after a fairly healthy start to the season, the Bears limped to the end of the schedule without him charge.
The position now goes to Ben Johnson, as predicted, and his offensive leanings are just what this team need. Only four teams scored fewer points than the Bears last year and if he brings just a little of what he showed in Detroit, this team will improve, This is obviously his first head coach position but the way he transformed Jared Goff and the Lions in the last three years should have Bears fans getting very excited.
Offensive Line
As far as aspects of the Bears team need to be sorted out, the offensive line is the most important. The defense needs some help as well, but it is the O-line that really needs to step up if the team is to improve in 2025. As mentioned, Johnson has form in this capacity, so that should give everyone a little encouragement over the offseason.
Caleb Williams caught a little flak for his performances at quarterback in the season just gone but he really didn’t get much of a chance with players around him not offering enough protection. The round one draft pick is not as high this year but there is actually enough talent on the roster to produce a successful team – and Johnson should be able to come through on that.
Second-Year QB
Speaking of Caleb Williams, it has to be acknowledged that he has just come off a rookie season that will inform and educate, at least as much as it might have hurt him. Williams showed last season – even among the chaos – that he has the talent and skill to be a franchise QB and lead the Bears for years to come.
He will have taken in the experience of last season and will be working on his release and pocket time – and will, no doubt, come back stronger in the Fall. It is very easy to look at how other rookie QBs fared but much of Williams’ problems came from those around him. Everything else can be improved upon relatively quickly and enable him to lead the team in the right direction soon.
Postseason Aim
Even with all the problems the Bears showed last season, there is nothing to say that the team cannot make the postseason – and that should absolutely be the aim in 2025. With a better functioning offensive line, Caleb Williams will play better, and that should mean a higher number in the wins column at the end of the season.
Ben Johnson will want to stamp his authority on the organization as early as possible, so we can hopefully expect a better, fitter team at the beginning of the next season. The start was there in 2024 but injuries and poor play allowed the campaign to fall away. There is a feeling that Johnson will not let that happen and keeping the possibility of playoff football alive as long as possible has to be the main priority.
Tough Division
There are a number of reasons why fans will still be skeptical of a Bears push for the playoffs in 2025. Top of that list will be the fact that the NFC North is arguably the strongest division in the league right now. It has never been one of the weakest but three of the four made the postseason last year and none of them look like weakening over the summer.
The Vikings and Packers have been strong, perhaps without being out-and-out Super Bowl contenders, for a while now and the Lions have stepped up in the last two years. So much so that it was a surprise to many when Detroit didn’t make it to the NFC Championship game. The Bears can only improve in that company but it does mean that there is no easy way into the playoffs – unlike in the NFC South, for example.
Tough Schedule
Having to play NFC North opponents twice in a season already makes it difficult for the Bears to improve dramatically this year. But, add to that, a schedule including some of the other best teams in the NFL and suddenly the task seems almost impossible. That’s just the way the scheduling goes though – and Johnson will have to put up with it.
Chicago’s conference opponents this year will be those from the NFC East (also one of the strongest divisions in the NFL). Then there are the powerful AFC North teams to contend with. It already looks difficult for the Bears to improve on the five paltry wins managed this year.
There hasn’t been a winning season since 2018 – and just two playoff games in the last 14 years. There really is only one direction the Bears can go and Johnson and Williams should be able to help with that.
