Chicago Bears Season Preview

The Chicago Bears come into the 2019 season on the back of a great season as they went 12-4 last year to top the NFC North. Matt Nagy and his staff did a cracking job in the Windy City as the Bears boasted one of the best defences in the league, as well as an offence who could more than hang with the best.

Their run in the playoffs didn’t last long though, losing to the Eagles in the Wild Card round having helped them reach the play offs a few weeks earlier in the last game of the regular season. Cody Parkey turned into the pantomime villain, missing a field goal in the dying embers of the game – it’s fair to say he’s currently a free agent…

This year, they come into the season having lost some vital members of the backroom staff, not least defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, who left to become head coach in Denver – taking both Ed Donatell AND Brandon Staley with him. As a result, you’d think it’s going to be very tough to replicate last season’s defensive effort – even with Khalil Mack on the roster…

All you need to do to see that defensive excellence in one season doesn’t necessarily translate to the next season is take a look at the 2018 Jags and Vikings following what they did in 2017. This year, you could very well see the Chicago Bears enter that same bracket.

Chicago Bears Coaching Moves

Chuck Pagano – Defensive Coordinator

Before he went to Indy to become HC for five years, Pagano spent some time as a DC in Baltimore way back in 2011. This is only his second ever posting in this particular role in the league, but with his tenure as a HC as well as his experience as a secondary coach.

It’s worth noting that in that season, the Ravens went 12-4 and reached the AFC Championship game, losing to the Pats. Haloti Ngata, Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed all went to the Pro Bowl following their season as a part of Pagano’s defence.

Mark DeLeone – ILB

Mark DeLeone has been brought in by Chuck Pagano as the new Inside Linebacker’s coach, reuniting him with Matt Nagy. DeLeone spent last season as the ILB coach in a very impressive Kansas City Chiefs unit, having spent the previous four years before that in other roles within the Chiefs organisation.

Deshea Townsend – DB coach

The former Steelers corner won two Super Bowl rings during his playing career, and has since made the transition into coaching. Most recently, Townsend spent last season at the New York Giants as the assistant defensive backs coach.

Chicago Bears Off-season acquisitions

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Safety

Having spent most of his career so far in Green Bay, Ha Ha is back in the NFC North following a year out East with Washington. Last season, having been traded to the Redskins, he had a fairly decent season ranking as PFF’s 14th highest graded Safety. This year, he joins a Bears D looking to bounce back following the loss of their mastermind, Fangio – it’ll be a tough ask, but he gets a crack at his old side in week one when the Packers visit Soldier Field.

Mike Davis, Running Back

Coming into his fifth season in the league, Davis has eventually left the NFC West having spent all of his four previous seasons there – originally with the 49ers before moving to Seattle in 2017. Last season, across 15 games, Davis ran for 514 yards and four touchdowns from 112 touches of the football – averaging 4.58 yards per carry. He also managed 34 receptions for 214 yards and one touchdown, proving he can influence games both on the ground and through the air – a trait he will need in Nagy’s west coast offensive scheme.

• Mike Davis, Running Back
• Marvin Hall, Wide Receiver
• Ted Larsen, Offensive Line
• Cordarrelle Patterson, Wide Receiver
• Buster Skrine, Cornerback

Chicago Bears NFL Draft

Chicago Bears Undrafted Free-Agents

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