As the Chicago Bears move closer to Week 1, the offense is carrying a stack of unresolved questions into the season. The roster has enough known pieces to feel promising, but there are still a few spots where the shape of this attack could change quickly once the games count.
At the center of it all is Caleb Williams. He’s entering his third year in the NFL and his second season working in Ben Johnson’s offense, and that matters.
Last year, Williams was still in the middle of the process of unlearning and relearning. This time around, the expectation is different.
He has more control now, and the real question is whether he can show a firm grasp of the offense and handle that responsibility the way the Bears need him to.
The backfield brings its own debate. Last season, the Bears handed 223 carries to D’Andre Swift and 169 to Kyle Monangai, and the natural assumption is that Monangai could keep pushing for a bigger slice of the workload while Swift enters the final year of his contract.
But it’s not quite that simple. Monangai has been banged up, and he’s less explosive than Swift.
So the question isn’t just whether Monangai climbs - it’s whether Swift really loses touches in the first place.
At receiver, the top of the depth chart is clear enough with Rome Odunze and Luther Burden as the top two wideouts. After that, things get interesting.
Khalif Raymond is listed as the current No. 3, but third-round rookie Zavion Thomas could start pressing for snaps before long. Thomas missed most of the preseason, then flashed in a big way in the finale.
Raymond may open the year ahead of him, but by season’s end the Bears will likely want Thomas taking on more work. That could mean Raymond finishes with more catches while Thomas ends up with more yards.
The tight end group is another area worth watching. The Bears have two legitimate tight ends and added a third in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, which raises the obvious question: is Sam Roush simply a development piece behind Cole Kmet, or do the Bears already have a plan for him? The early signs point toward the team leaning into three-tight-end looks, so the rookie’s role will be one to track closely.
And then there’s Braxton Jones. The question there is straightforward: how long does he keep his job? The Bears think he played well enough that they can ease him back, but that decision will hinge more on Jones than on Trapilo.
In Other News...
Bears Fans Are Mourning A 1985 Champion As More Is Confirmed
The Bears lost one of the central figures from their 1985 championship team when former fullback Matt Suhey was found unresponsive in his Deerfield home and later pronounced dead. The Lake County Coroners Office said there were no suspicious circumstances, and officials indicated the death was expected to be listed as natural causes given Suheys significant medical history.
For Bears fans, Suheys place in franchise lore was already secure. He carved out a successful 10-year NFL career in Chicago and helped define the 1985 seasons run to the title, including scoring the opening touchdown in Super Bowl XX, a moment that remains part of the teams most celebrated memory. [Read more 🡒]
Bears Fans Now Have The Official Word On Matt Suheys Death
Matt Suheys death has now been officially attributed to natural causes, ending the uncertainty that followed news of the former Bears fullback being found unresponsive at his Deerfield, Illinois home. The Lake County Coroners Office said there were no suspicious circumstances, and noted his death was tied to a significant medical history, a sobering update on a player longtime Chicago fans remember from one of the franchises most celebrated eras.
Suhey spent 10 years with the Bears and carved out a reputation as a reliable, hard-nosed presence in the backfield, capped by a career highlight that still resonates at Halas Hall: the opening touchdown in Super Bowl XX. For Bears fans, the official finding brings clarity, but it also closes another chapter on a figure from that championship team whose name still carries weight in Chicagos football history. [Read more 🡒]
Bears Get Needed Week 1 Relief But One Absence Still Looms
Rome Odunze was the one notable absence when the Bears opened their Week 1 preparation for Carolina, sitting out Tuesdays practice because of a lower-body injury. It was the lone blip on an otherwise encouraging injury report, as Chicago got back to work without any fresh issues showing up on the field.
DAndre Swift and Kyle Monangai were both back in action after their recent injury scares, with Swift returning from cramps and Monangai moving on from a hyperextended knee. For a team trying to get through the first week of the season in decent shape, that kind of early stability matters, even if Odunzes status is the one situation still worth monitoring as the opener approaches. [Read more 🡒]