The 2018 season for the Chicago Bears was a surprise to most. If you are a Bears fan, however, you knew they had a majority of the pieces already in place. Seeing it all come together so quickly was not something that all Bears fans foreshadowed.
2018, while ending on a low note, was a season that the Bears franchise and their fans desperately needed. There are obviously plenty of factors that played into the success of the 2018 season. But it wouldn’t do justice to the 2018 Bears, without taking a look at where they came from.
Rewind to the 2017 season, an interesting one for Bears fans. With a shiny new toy at quarterback getting his shot, expectations were higher than years past with Jay Cutler. Trubisky was unable to show his true talents in such a conservative offense. Nonetheless, it was a beneficial experience for Trubisky to learn the speed of NFL games. Signing a head coach like Matt Nagy that could mold a young quarterback into his complex offense was a definite step in the right direction.
Now the 2018 Bears offense was definitely not an elite offense in the NFL. However, they showed some flashes of what could be coming in the future. With free agent signings like Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel, and Trey Burton; then drafting Anthony Miller in the second round of the 2018 draft, the Chicago Bears were able to scratch the surface on a complicated Matt Nagy offense. If you give this offense a whole offseason, training camp, and the knowledge they now have, the Bears offense should be confident they will catch a greater glimpse of what exactly Matt Nagy is capable of behind the wheel.
Many would agree that one of the most important offseason move leading into 2018 was re-signing Vic Fangio. In his time with Chicago, he quickly turned the Bears defense into one the league’s best. When the Bears and Fangio came to an agreement on a contract after the 2017 season, I knew this was one of the best moves the team could make all offseason.
In John Fox’s last year in Chicago, the Bears had a quiet top-15 defense that kept them in most games. There was an obvious lack of depth and talent at skill positions like edge rush.
The solution? A man by the name of Khalil Mack. Even prior to trading for Mack, Bears Nation was already excited about what 2018 could hold in store for the Bear’s defense. His addition not only gave us the talent we needed a pass rush, but it also allowed to have the depth needed; which were the two things I was worried about the most heading into the season.
When the Bears decide to match Green Bay’s offer to keep Kyle Fuller in Chicago, it became clear that they were plotting their playoff push. Everything on the defensive side of the ball was working. It was just a matter of keeping the main pieces in tack and only adding to it. This allowed for more cohesion in the secondary. A group of guys that all managed to hold their own just one year before. So it was no surprise the Bears led the league in takeaways in 2018 because they managed to follow one simple rule, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Lastly, FOR THE FANS! If you kept your eyes and ears peeled on Coach Nagy during press conferences or talking to the team, one thing, in particular, seemed to be a common trend, the fans. Nagy would often say things like, “how about those fans out there?” or “let’s go out there and win this for the fans.” It seemed like for the first time in a very long time, the Bears were playing for more than just themselves. They were not only playing for their teammates around them but more importantly, the city of Chicago. And you felt it on a regular basis before, during and after games. It was something that Bears fans had not felt for a long time. For that, we say thank you. Thank you to the 2018 Chicago Bears for making football fun again in the Windy City.
