Joe, you and many others say record doesn't matter. I understand the premise BUT I'm not so easily ready to throw in the season. NFL seasons are precious, there are very few rebuilds in the NFL like you saw with the Cubs 8 years back and white sox about 4 years back, unless you are the Detroit Lions.
For me this team has to compete. Not as a superbowl contender but as a team trying to make playoffs. There is enough talent there on defense between....
Jaylon Johnson
Roquan Smith
Robert Quinn
Eddie Jackson (like him or not)
I understand there are holes but those can be filled to a point.
On offense you have a young QB who is ready to take a step forward, you have good running game with one very good RB and another emerging. The O line has building blocks and still not a complete puzzle yet (more moves to make), you have an emerging WR with more moves still pending, you have a young TE who may be the answer.
Again I understand the holes but there is still a entire off season and draft still left.
I'm not ready to make this season a develmental season because in football every season is precious and has a identity of its own. To me there are not tear downs and rebuilds in football.
Therefore, right or wrong, my expectation is this team fighting for playoffs. Anything less is a disappointing season, even if Fuelds takes a step forward with a bad team record. Whats the point of a step forward for your young QB if you can't win games??
NFL is year to year.....so you take your chances each year.
Let me contextualize it a different way.
If the Bears end up surprising everyone and being successful, I am not going to be mad that they played out of a top 10 pick.
However, I can honestly look at the current state of the Bears and see where they are at, and that will inform my emotional investment in the team and what areas I place it in.
Looking at the state of the team, which I do indeed blame on Ryan PACE (Not Poles), 2022 is going to be 2004 all over again in my book.
To refresh people's memory of that, it was Jerry Angelo deciding to gut and rebuild the team under Lovie Smith, and there were contant radio jokes about "Jerry Angelo's wood chipper" because he kept cutting players and gutting the roster, which was needed for the scheme transition and to properly build the team back up.
2004 sucked as a season. But - the defense gelled the last 4 games and gave a hint of things to come.
Now lets look at 2022. New GM, New Head coach, and scheme transitions. No need for a "woodchipper" because a third of the roster was free agents anyway. Perhaps more challenging, the Bears only have 6 picks and none in rd 1. And I've read that the Bears are acutely aware of the roster limitations and are commited to building this up right for the long haul, not the short term, which is why they aren't spending right now.
I also read that because they are aware of the roster limitations, a final evaluation on Fields will not happen until the end of 2023 - apparently they found what Nagy did so utterly worthless that they are going to treat 2022 as if it were Justin's rookie season, especially since this is a new scheme and it will take a couple years for him to get comfortable.
NONE of that is going to be music to the ears of the perennial impatient Bears fans. But that's how the team is going to be, whether fans like it or not.
So, in the face of this reality, "I choose life." I choose to accept that any enjoyment to be had out of the upcoming season likely won't be tethered to wins and losses. Therefore, like 2004, I choose to look for growth. Growth from Fields. Growth from whomever they drafted and see if Poles can actually draft. Growth from perhaps unexpected places that can now flourish under real, proper coaching vs the crap Nagy had.
And to see if I can see a future from all of that. I did at the end of 2004, saying the Bears would be in the Superbowl in 2 years (this board lit me up for that, and I was right ;p ). Too soon to tell right now obviously for this group.
But that is how I will be choosing to digest games this year. And I think I will be in a better place for it emotionally than most bitchy Bears fans; especially on Sundays.