Bears overreactions: Is drafting Young or Stroud a possibility? originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The finish line is in sight for the 2022 Bears.
The 3-13 Bears enter Week 18 with a realistic shot to land the No. 1 pick. If the Bears lose Sunday to the Minnesota Vikings and the Houston Texans beat the Indianapolis Colts, the Bears will be first on the clock, should they keep the pick, when the 2023 NFL Draft begins.
Head coach Matt Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles decided to shut down quarterback Justin Fields, citing a hip strain suffered in the Bears’ 41-10 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 17.
A critical offseason is on the horizon, and it has the final overreactions mailbag of the season overflowing. Let’s get to it.
Overreaction? No.
General manager Ryan Poles just finished the “tear down” portion of his rebuild at the NFL trade deadline. This Bears roster is a barren cupboard with two or three bags of decent potato chips and nothing else.
The rebuild hasn’t even started, and a lot of people think one offseason will be enough to take a team with an atrocious defense and the 32nd-ranked passing offense and make it competitive.
Poles has to find three or four new offensive linemen. The entire defensive line has to be reworked. The linebacking corps is a zero, and the Bears don’t have a true No. 1 receiver.
You can’t fix all that in one offseason.
The optimism is understandable, given Fields’ electric playmaking as a runner. But he must improve as a passer next season to show he’s a guy who can be relied on to win a game with his arm.
Lot’s of boxes to check.
If the Bears can go from three wins to six or seven next season, that will be a massive improvement. That’s the best they can hope for, in my opinion.
Overreaction? Yes.
Matt Eberflus is going to have a long leash to start his tenure. He took the job knowing it was going to be a full-scale rebuild. The McCaskeys know that. They expected this season to be rough.
We don’t have much to judge Eberflus on as a head coach. The team showed great buy-in and fight up until the second half in Detroit last Sunday. He has made some questionable end-of-half decisions but has also shown he can make quality in-game adjustments.
Eberflus isn’t going anywhere.
I will, however, throw a grenade into the discourse and run. What if Sean Payton thinks he can make Justin Fields a superstar?
That’s all for now.
Overreaction? I don’t think so.
Chase Claypool has done little since arriving at the start of November. It was always going to be an uphill climb for him to make a legitimate impact during the back half of the season.
We probably won’t know if Claypool is a fit in the Bears’ offense until midway through next season. So patience is needed and warranted.
That being said, the price the Bears paid for Claypool puts this trade already in the potential “bust zone.” As of right now, the pick the Bears sent to the Pittsburgh Steelers would be the No. 33 overall pick in the draft. That’s basically a late first-round pick for a guy who has 12 catches for 111 yards since joining the team.
I’ve always liked Claypool’s ability. But with the rebuild in its infancy, keeping that pick and drafting a receiver like LSU’s Kayshon Boutte or Tennessee’s Jaylin Hyatt might have been better use of valuable draft capital.
The jury will remain out until we see how Claypool looks after an entire offseason of work with Fields, but early returns have been suboptimal.
Overreaction? No.
I’m going to frame this as “Fields still needs work as a pocket passer.”
The conversation around Fields requires nuance, which doesn’t happen on social media.
Two things can be true: Fields made strides in Year 2 and is a rare playmaker with his legs but has to continue to make strides as a passer. He only topped 200 yards in two games this season and only completed 20 passes in one game. He ranks 26th in attempts and 25th in yards.
Now, a lot of that is based on the Bears’ leaky offensive line and run-first identity. Fixing the O-line should, in theory, help Fields grow as a passer.
Fields took a big step toward stardom this season. But if he is going to be a long-term, Super Bowl-caliber quarterback, he has to show he can consistently beat teams with his arm from the pocket. The running ability can make him special, but it has to be secondary to what he does with his arm.
The Bears believe Fields is on track to be a good passer, but there’s more work to be done both by Fields and the organization.
Don’t believe me? Take Poles’ word for it.
“He’s shown ability to make a ton of plays with his legs,” Poles told Jeff Joniak of Fields. “No one questions his playmaking ability, but really growing as a passer is going to be the next step.”
Overreaction? Probably.
Do I think the Bears will look to draft a quarterback at No. 1 or No. 2? No. Absolutely not.
But I’m not sure it can be 100 percent ruled out because Poles didn’t draft Fields. As we discussed earlier, the rebuild is still in its early stages. If Poles wants to restart the rookie quarterback contract clock, he could draft Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud and then trade Fields for draft capital.
Nothing is impossible, but that feels highly unlikely.
RELATED: Claypool was sending message with sideline outburst
Fields has impressed the Bears with his work ethic, toughness, and leadership this season. He wants to be great, and they believe he can.
But you can’t rule anything out entirely.
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