The Chicago Bears enter franchise limbo

The Chicago Bears hold a 6-21 record under quarterback Justin Fields, uncertainty over the future of their high draft pick, a questionable future for floundering coach Matt Eberflus and a mismatched roster that has landed the entire front office on the hot seat.

A high-spending offseason highlighted by some eye-catching trade deals over the draft season sent expectations skyrocketing. But a humbling 0-4 start has brought an end to all that preseason hype.

An open-and-out QB mess for the Chicago Bears

Justin Fields

Justin Fields has been a terrible fit for the Chicago Bears. The offense grinds to a halt once his rushing ability stops. At Ohio State, Fields showed chemistry with multiple wide receivers, but now in his third season in Chicago, he has failed to develop any assured chemistry with any Bears receiver.

Fields rushed for 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns in his second season, but he threw for just 2,242 yards and 17 TDs with 11 interceptions.

This season, Fields has seemingly lost his rushing ability and is one of the worst-performing passers at his position.

Justin Fields' style favors big plays whether running or passing. The franchise has tried to develop a system around short runs and deep bombs (e.g. Philadelphia Eagles under Jalen Hurts), trying desperately to identify a capable No. 1 deep-threat wide receiver in Chase Claypool or D.J. Moore. But these additions have not unlocked Fields in the passing game.

The Chicago Bears offensive line is often criticized for getting Fields in trouble. This is too harsh. The line can only do so much as Fields learns the passing game. Many of the hits/sacks given up by this unit are due to Fields holding onto the ball for too long waiting for a receiver to go deep. The unit looks completely different during run plays where they seem coordinated and aggressive.

After the Week 1 loss to the Green Bay Packers, Fields said:

"Pre-snap penalties, false starts, holdings, and then when we put ourselves in third-and-longs, third-and-10, third-and-15s, it’s hard to convert on that for an NFL offense. So, I think if we just clean that up, keep getting better every day, then we’ll be fine.”

An offense out of wack, with a line operating as an unaligned unit, too many long downs and constant drops/fumbles are the hallmarks of a dysfunctional offense, the trademark offense of a franchise coached by a defensive head coach.

While occupying the position as the franchise's most valuable asset, Justin Fields has received little support, if any, from coach Matt Eberflus (who is 3-18 in Chicago).

The blame is on neither. It is squarely on a front office that bound this unholy offensive matrimony from the start. General manager Ryan Poles set both up for failure when he never resource-focused on either.

A tag of war on resources for Chicago Bears

The solution was a further investment on offense. This was not pursued, defensive-minded coach Matt Eberflus shifted resources towards trying to save his floundering defense, a unit that last season allowed 331 points in their last 10 games (losing all of them).

The Bears' front office should've picked a side of the ball and invested heavily in that one direction. Instead, GM Ryan Poles attempted to fix both sides in one offseason. While attempting the proverbial knocking two birds out with one stone, he missed both birds. The Chicago Bears free agency is a host of names across various positions on both sides of the ball.

Chicago Bears' free-agency additions 2023:

Defense

Tremaine Edmunds (linebacker)

DeMarcus Walker (linebacker)

T.J. Edwards (linebacker)

Andrew Billings (defensive line)

Yannick Ngakoue (defensive line)

Dylan Cole (linebacker)

Rasheem Green (defensive line)

Offense

D.J. Moore (wide receiver)

P.J. Walker (backup QB)

Nate Davis (offensive line)

Robert Tonyan (tight end)

D'Onta Freeman (running back)

Chicago Bears' 2023 draft additions:

Darnell Wright (offensive line), first round

Gervon Dexter (defensive line), second round

Tyrique Stevenson (defensive back), second round

Zacch Pickens (defensive line), third round

After taking an offensive player in the first round, a rush of defensive players came off the board for the Bears. These are contributors to Eberflus' side of the ball. The resources should've gone towards a more consistent offense.

Roschon Johnson (running back), fourth round

Tyler Scott (wide receiver), fourth round

Noah Sewell (linebacker), fifth round

Terrell Smith (defensive back), fifth round

Travis Bell (defensive line), seventh round

Kendall Williams (defensive back), seventh round

After a return to the offensive identity of the team early on Day 3, another round of defensive players closed the draft for the Chicago Bears.

The front office should've focused on one side of the ball, Eberflus' defense or Fields' offense, and spent all its offseason capital on that one side. Failing to solve the tag of war of resources will probably cost Eberflus his job and this front office a star QB.