Is The North Still Up For the Taking?

[TheEarlofRobin]

It's not about taking anything on faith, I have seen this team lose several games because of coaching blunders, not lack of talent. Their isn't a huge gap between the talent the Bears have compared to what other teams in the division have, the difference is coaching.

The Bears had zero players make the pro bowl last year. They lost 10 games in a row for the 2nd time in 3 seasons.

I'm willing to give the organization a clean slate because they are at least trying to do things differently.

Ryan Poles is still the GM. They are doing things the same way they've always done them.

 

[playthrough2001]

The Bears had zero players make the pro bowl last year. They lost 10 games in a row for the 2nd time in 3 seasons.

The NFL is a year to year league. You know this. They blew an inordinate amount of games. Only Eberflus loses the Washington game. A real coach calls timeout, organizes his defense, and would have protected the sidelines on the previous play. Football 101… **** that guy!

However, I can’t believe how tough their schedule looks for 2025.

 

[Toast88]

No, the North is not up for the taking. The Bears have it on lock.

Did you not hear Poles when he said, "We're going to take the North and never give it back."?

 

[Rise]

The schedule was “easy” last year for the division. Not so this year. I think the winner will be at 11 wins. Probably one wild card team and that’s it. Bears will be the only team who increases win total because they only won 5 games. The others will all win less than they did in 2024.

 

[Xplosive]

It's an easy position to defend because the Bears made it an easy position to defend...for decades now we have seen this organization make horrible picks, or letting the good players walk...we have seen numerous coordinators and position coaches just flounder and and bring nothing to the table....we have seen questionable HC hires...and GM's don't last here because of these shortcoming. But the one thing that does not change are the nimrods at the top. When I say I have seen this before I'm not just talking about this cycle the Bears are in....I live in Redskin/Commanders country, I have seen what horrible ownership can do to a team and its fanbase. Maybe it is time for high expectations but this team has not given me a reason to have high expectations.


You are the embodiment of a meatball. This isn't a situation of expecting the worse case scenario solely based on past experiences. You are claiming that Bears could have a shot because in your mind every other team in the division didn't improve or got worse and the Bears were the only ones to make any significant improvements. But you leave out the fact that 2 major defensive players missed significant time for the Lions and the offense retained it's major pieces and most importantly still has their good HC. The crux of your argument with Minnesota is they were lucky, even you have to recognize how weak of an argument that is. O'Connell has coached them to a 13 win season and a 14 win season and likely would have had another winning record season had Cousins not blown his achilles, combine that with the fact they didn't lose their coordinators and if O'Connell can resurge Darnold career, you can imagine what he can do with McCarthy. GB has a coach that has missed the playoffs once since taking over the Packers. But I am supposed to think a rookie HC, with a rookie OC, with a 2nd year QB in his 1st year in that offensive system, who has the 2 hardest current SOS can overcome the 3 teams who not only finished ahead of the Bears but made the playoffs. Trust me this isn't because "It's the Bears". Maybe if the Bears played in the AFC South or the NFC South or the NFC West I could see how there is a path for a division title.


All I am saying is think realistic and match your expectations. Ryan Poles does not have a good track record and this is his last chance. So I am not holding my breath that this organization has it right.

Bears history is a matter of fact, therefore nothing can be debated about their past. Choosing to say well they have had bad ownership and still have bad ownership so the team will be bad... Is the embodiment of a lazy take. The team owners have slowly but surely done things differently and if you choose to ignore the money they have invested into the top head coaching prospect on the market, then you are biased and can feel safe and comfy in your "I'll believe it when I see it" approach.

Your definition of meatball is absolutely your right and I have no interest in trying to redefine anything for you. I have looked at what every team has done in the division and I can say with actual KNOWLEDGE that the Bears and Minnesota have improved their overall talent level, meanwhile GB and Detroit have not added dramatic improvement. This isn't based on fan emotion or hope, it's also not based on lazy pessimism. Tell me what improvements you have seen for either team thus far that will offset the losses they have...?

Nothing has been proven about the Bears or any other team for the 2025 season. Change is inevitable and I believe the Bears have made progressive change in both talent and coaching. There isn't a huge gulf of difference between the Bears and the rest of division in reality, despite your negative perspective.

 

[Xplosive]

The Bears had zero players make the pro bowl last year. They lost 10 games in a row for the 2nd time in 3 seasons.


Ryan Poles is still the GM. They are doing things the same way they've always done them.

Key words: Last Year. The funny thing about pro bowlers is that winning teams magically have more of them. When the close games the Bears have been losing become wins, the pro bowls will follow.

Your disdain for Poles is an obvious bias that you are using as a crutch of doubt to negate the improvements the team is making. Perhaps that isn't the best way of approaching things. Look at what the guy is doing in 2025 not whether you are mad he traded for Claypool.

 

[TheEarlofRobin]

Key words: Last Year. The funny thing about pro bowlers is that winning teams magically have more of them. When the close games the Bears have been losing become wins, the pro bowls will follow.

Your disdain for Poles is an obvious bias that you are using as a crutch of doubt to negate the improvements the team is making. Perhaps that isn't the best way of approaching things. Look at what the guy is doing in 2025 not whether you are mad he traded for Claypool.

Well, the moves Poles has made in previous years has an impact on this year's roster. I don't like how he has constructed the roster...how many of these FA signings will be on the roster three years from now? Its too dependent on FA signings. The draft picks aren't developing. I think its safe to say that the Bears basically wasted a year of Caleb's development as well.

There was a lot of optimism last year over the 'improved roster'. I didn't really buy it, and halfway through the season I hypothetically asked "what if this roster is really just the talent of a 5 win team?". People are still in denial of that....perhaps this collection of players simply isn't that good. Eberflus had his flaws, but the team didn't get any better after he was fired. They got noticeably worse on defense. The OL was a joke. Swift was just a guy. Sweat has not lived up to expectations. Caleb struggled. So yeah, the Bears sucked last year. Will they turn things around in one offseason? I'm guessing no.

 

[onebud34]

What makes that post so funny/awful is the fact they re-signed Jones before they traded for Mason

I think the Vikings overachieved last year, that team doesn't have much depth and dodged any major injuries(outside of Darrisaw) last year.