The Chicago Bears are one of the most historic NFL franchises of all time. With nine NFL championships and 786 wins (second most all-time), Chicago is one of the NFL’s legendary teams.
But here’s another remarkable stat: the Bears have never had a 4,000-yard passer in their history. Think about that: the Bears – founded in 1920 – have not had a single-season 4,000-yard passer in their 104-year history.
Every other NFL team has had at least one 4,000-yard passer and yet the Chicago Bears – who, along with the Cardinals, are the oldest franchises in league history – have not.
There have been 15 seasons where a quarterback has passed for over 5,000 yards in a season and the Bears can’t even reach 4,000.
Why? Something to know about the Chicago Bears franchise is that it has always been built around defense.
The reason the Bears have won so many games over the years is because of their legendary defensive players. Players like Dick Butkus, Mike Singletary and Brian Urlacher have kept the Bears relevant.
In the modern NFL, however, offense wins championships. The Bears have won just one of their nine league titles in the Super Bowl Era and that one Super Bowl crown was only because they had what many pundits consider the best defense of all time.
Ask any Bears fan who their best QB ever is and a lot of them will say Jay Cutler. The same Jay Cutler who sported an 85.2 passer rating and averaged less than 20 touchdowns – and more than 13 interceptions – per year in his career.
Others will say that the best QB was Sid Luckman, who was the signal caller for four of Chicago’s NFL championships and also won a league MVP. But Luckman was playing in an era when the forward pass was an afterthought to the run game and he only eclipsed 2,000 yards passing twice in his career.
That brings us to the modern day, where the Bears seem to have lost all hope in Justin Fields. The former Ohio State star was good – but not great – last year, but this year he seems to have lost all his confidence. His big play ability – which made him so intriguing in 2022 – has seemingly vanished.
Fields has more turnovers (five) than touchdowns (four) and only has 109 rushing yards – good for an average of 36 rushing yards per game.
This is a stark contrast from last year’s record-breaking 1,143 yard rushing season, one where the first-round selection averaged 76 rushing YPG.
Fields isn’t a good quarterback, but the coaching staff hasn’t been doing him any favors. Whether it’s not letting him push it deep or telling him to be more of a pocket passer, the staff has failed to play to his strengths through three games in 2023.
So how does this get fixed? Chicago has had this problem for a long time and that would suggest that the Bears ownership has failed to bring in the right coaches and complementary players to help their QBs flourish.
The 2024 NFL Quarterback Class is predicted by many to be one of the best in league history and the Bears are due to have another great pick, considering their 0-3 start to the season – and with no signs of things improving.
If the Bears want their next QB to succeed, it will require some major changes within the organization.
