Bears pre-draft depth chart: Ryan Poles has a lot of work to do originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The 2022 Bears were a young, inexperienced team with holes all over the roster. General manager Ryan Poles has done some refurbishing work this offseason, but a lot of work remains to turn a team that went 3-14 into a team with playoff potential.
Poles bolstered the wide receiving corps with the acquisition of DJ Moore and gave the linebacking corps a facelift with the additions of Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards.
That's a plus.
But Poles has relatively neglected to fill the massive holes on the offensive and defensive lines, which likely means that's where the Bears will be going early and often in the draft.
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The Bears' roster has improved from where it stood four months ago. In fairness, it probably couldn't have gotten worse. Poles knows this is a rebuilding effort that will take time and patience. The current outlook of the 2023 depth chart reflects a rebuild that is very much still on the ground floor.
Quarterback
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Justin Fields, P.J. Walker, Nathan Peterman
The Bears signaled their belief in Fields when they elected to trade the No. 1 pick to the Carolina Panthers for a haul that included Moore.
This is a critical year for Fields' development. While he showcased electric playmaking ability with his legs last season, he has to make huge strides as a passer in Year 3. The processing has to get quicker, as does the pocket poise.
With an improved offensive line and the addition of Moore, Fields should be able to take an important step forward this fall. If he doesn't, the Bears might be forced to head back to the drawing board at quarterback.
Signing Walker to backup Fields gives the Bears a competent No. 2 quarterback with a similar skillset who can step in and keep the ship afloat if Fields misses time.
Running backs
RB: Khalil Herbert, D'Onta Foreman, Travis Homer, Trestan Ebner
FB: Khari Blasingame
Poles tried to re-sign David Montgomery, but the veteran running back ended up leaving Chicago for the division-rival Lions.
Montgomery is a tough, hard-nosed runner, but he doesn't fit what the Bears want in a running back. Poles and Eberflus want quick, twitchy, explosive backs who can make one cut and be gone.
They have that in Herbert and Foreman, who combined for 43 explosive runs (10 or more yards) last season. Montgomery only accounted for 17.
Foreman had a career year last season in Carolina and arrives in Chicago looking to be the lead back.
"I came here to try to be the guy," Foreman said on a Zoom conference call with Chicago media upon signing. "I think if I didn’t come here with that mentality, I would be doing myself a disservice. I think I would be doing the team a disservice. All due respect, humble confidence, not trying to make it seem like anything other than just exactly what it is. That’s just me being confident in myself and feeling like I could come in and be the guy and be a guy that people count on and I can help us win. I didn’t come here to take a backseat to anybody. I’m a team guy. I want to do anything I can do to help in any role that they put me in, but coming here with the mindset of wanting to be the guy, wanting to be a person who can help this team and make a lot of plays for this team."
The Bears still need to draft a running back and likely will do so on Day 3.
As for Ebner, he'll likely enter training camp on the roster bubble.
Wide receiver
X: DJ Moore, Daurice Fountain, Joe Reed
Z: Chase Claypool, Equanimeous St. Brown
Slot: Darnell Mooney, Velus Jones Jr., Nsimba Webster
Adding Moore is huge for Fields. The 26-year-old receiver has the second most targets between 10 and 19 yards in the NFL from 2019-22. That's an area of the field where Fields thrives, completing 66.7 percent of his passes in that range.
Moore also allows Mooney to slide into the slot, a role he is better suited to find success.
After Moore, Mooney, and Claypool, the wide receiver room falls off a cliff. St. Brown is a good blocker who knows the system but brings little to the table in terms of playmaking with the ball in his hands. Jones had a few nice moments during his rookie season, but it was clear the coaches didn't trust him with anything other than jet sweeps and go routes.
The Bears ask their receivers to be able to play all three positions and move between them interchangeably, so you could theoretically put the reserves in any order behind the top three.
The Bears must add to the wide receiver room either in the draft or with another cheap veteran on the open market. Perhaps both.
Tight end
Cole Kmet, Robert Tonyan, Chase Allen, Jake Tonges
Expect Kmet and the Bears to get an extension done sometime this summer. The 24-year-old started to blossom midway through last season and is someone the Bears want to keep around long-term.
"Cole's a special guy," Eberflus said last November. "He is energy, he is enthusiasm, he brings light into a room. Man, when he comes in here into our offensive room – and really talking to the whole team – he just does a really good with that. So he's everything we stand for."
Tonyan is a solid No. 2 tight end to put alongside Kmet. The McHenry native knows offensive coordinator Luke Getsy and is a reliable pass-catching target, especially in the red zone.
In a scheme that needs multiple tight ends to function, Tonyan is a clear upgrade over Ryan Griffin and Trevon Wesco.
"This offense goes through the tight ends, whether it’s blocking, passing, whatever it is," Tonyan said. "And just a good pair. Cole’s a great tight end. He’s big, strong and I think that adding that - that can complement me and him. I’m super pumped. We didn’t really talk in super detail because, obviously, it’s early, but I’m just excited to get in this building and get things rolling and just be a part of a team that’s ascending in the right direction."
Offensive line
LT: Braxton Jones, Kellen Diesch
LG: Teven Jenkins, Lucas Patrick, Dieter Eiselen
C: Cody Whitehair, Lucas Patrick, Doug Kramer
RG: Nate Davis, Ja'Tyre Carter
RT: Larry Borom, Alex Leatherwood
The Bears' offensive line isn't a pretty sight.
The addition of Nate Davis boosts the interior but creates questions about the future of Teven Jenkins and Cody Whitehair. At the moment, all signs point to the Bears shifting Jenkins to left guard and moving Whitehair to center initially. Patrick also should factor into the center equation, and the Bears still could bring back Sam Mustipher.
Most importantly, the Bears must add a tackle early in the draft and fill out their offensive line depth. Borom showed last season that he's an OK depth option but shouldn't be relied on to start. After joining the Bears before Week 1, Leatherwood struggled in minimal game action.
Jones showed impressive growth during his rookie season but might be better off at right tackle.
Left or right tackle should be a top priority in the draft, and Poles certainly will look to add developmental linemen on Day 3.
Defensive line
DE: Trevis Gipson, Gerri Green
1T: Andrew Billings, Andrew Brown, Donovan Jeter
3T: Justin Jones, Jayln Holmes
DE: DeMarcus Walker, Dominque Robinson
There's a lot of holes on the defensive line as we head toward the draft.
Walker is a solid pass rusher with the versatility to play inside and out. Billings is a competent run-stopping nose tackle but offers little in terms of pass rush.
The Bears still need to add at least two edge rushers and a three technique in the draft/free agency. Gipson had a disappointing season in 2022. The Bears thought he could pick up the slack after Robert Quinn was traded to the Eagles, but Gipson mustered just three sacks and 30 total pressures on the season.
Robinson still has the potential to develop into a competent third-down pass rusher, but he's nothing more than a rotational piece at the moment. This group is far from finished.
Linebackers
SAM: Jack Sanborn, Dylan Cole, Kuony Deng
MIKE: Tremaine Edmunds, Terrell Lewis
WILL: T.J. Edwards, Sterling Weatherford, DeMarquis Gates
The Bears revamped their linebacking corps in free agency with the additions of Edmunds and Edwards.
Eberflus said at the annual NFL league meeting that Edmunds, with his length and athleticism, will be the MIKE linebacker while Edwards will man the WILL.
Those moves allow Sanborn to slide over to the SAM spot, a position that lets him do what he does best and hides his athletic limitations.
Secondary
CB1: Jaylon Johnson, Jaylon Jones, Michael Ojemudia
CB2: Kyler Gordon (starter in base), Kindle Vildor (starter in nickel), Harrison Hand, Greg Stroman Jr.
Nickel: Kyler Gordon, Josh Blackwell
FS: Eddie Jackson, Elijah Hicks
SS: Jaquan Brisker, Adrian Colbert, A.J. Thomas
Poles reshaped the Bears' secondary last offseason when he drafted Gordon and Brisker in the second round. Both rookies took their lumps in Year 1 but look to be long-term pieces in the backend of Eberflus' defense.
Jackson had a renaissance season in 2022 before suffering a Lisfranc injury that cost him the final month of the season. The veteran safety avoided surgery and plans to be on track to be ready to go this fall.
As for Johnson, the third-year cornerback had a solid season. Opposing quarterbacks often went away from Johnson, choosing instead to attack Vildor or Gordon. As a result, Johnson's ball production wasn't where he or the Bears want it to be. Still, the Utah product was pleased with his play and believes he has proven he is one of the best corners in the league.
"I felt like I had a very consistent year," Johnson told NBC Sports Chicago at Radio Row of Super Bowl 57. "I feel like I had a very consistent year, I feel like in coverage. I feel like the only negative to take away is not having the interceptions that I wanted. For whatever reason, they just don't seem to fall in my hands. I don't seem to get the tips, the overthrows, the bad passes. I don't seem to be in a position to get too many interceptions.
"I feel like for me it's really just being sound in coverage. For me, that's something I wanted to do was be dominant in coverage and that's something I feel like I've been able to get better at throughout my years in the league. I feel like there's really not anything that I can't do. It's just moreso just trying to create things. But at the end of the day, I'm not a player that tries to force things either. It's just staying true to myself as well. But overall, very solid and consistent."
The Bears need to draft another corner who can hopefully take over the outside duties opposite Johnson and allow Gordon to focus fully on the nickel.
Specialists
K: Cairo Santos
P: Trenton Gill
LS: Patrick Scales
KR: Velus Jones Jr., Trestan Ebner
PR: Velus Jones Jr.
The Bears probably need to find a more reliable option at punt returner than Jones. He struggled fielding punts early in the season and had the duties stripped. Dante Pettis, who returned punts after Jones lost the job, is currently a free agent.
