Off-Season — Home — What’s Cool?

Growing up a fan of Chicago sports teams has taught me the valuable life lesson of never letting your hopes get too high. This was all but completely validated when the Bears lost Super Bowl XLI to Peyton Manning’s Indianapolis Colts in 2007 and 8-year-old me was heartbroken. Even after last season’s nightmarish ending to an otherwise very successful year and a difficult schedule in the upcoming season, I’m optimistic for the Chicago Bears’ chances moving forward. Here’s why.

The first factor that leads me to find confidence in my navy and orange toting team is the lack of competition in their NFC North division. The Minnesota Vikings may give the Bears a run for their money in taking clinching a spot in the playoffs by winning the division, but a rebuilding Green Bay and a struggling Detroit almost guarantee 3-4 wins for Chicago next season. I’m hoping that another impressive defensive showing from Chicago is enough to propel them to the 11-12 wins likely needed to win their division.

Another factor that has me excited for next season is a healthy and maturing offense. Although they ranked #21 overall offensively last season, QB Mitchell Trubisky has had a long off-season to improve and make adjustments to his game. What I consider a stacked backfield and skilled receiver core should make Trubisky’s job relatively easy despite the challenging opponents Chicago will face next season.

The final and main factor that has me excited for the Chicago Bears’ next season and future in general is an absolute powerhouse defensive unit. Headed by Pro Bowler Khalil Mack, the Bears defensive unit may not be able to again rank #1 overall defensively, but they should still be a force to reckoned with for opposing offenses. I expect a high amount of forced turnovers and low points allowed again for Chicago. It isn’t Bears football without some high quality defense, right?

While there may be a regression from last year’s promising season, and there are still factors to consider such as a lack of a competent kicker and a difficult upcoming schedule, I’m going against my learned apprehension as a Chicago sports fan and am choosing to be optimistic and excited for the future of the Chicago Bears. Hopefully my dreams aren’t double-doinked into oblivion all over again.