Bears' Spot in NFL Power Rankings Denotes Major Concern with Chicago's Roster

The Bears' spot in a recent NFL power rankings shows how much promise Chicago has but also accounts for the very real concern about regression.

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After an upstart campaign that saw the Chicago Bears finish with an 11-6 record, an NFC North title and a playoff win, one would assume the fact that the Bears are clearly moving in the right direction would lead to an elite spot in NFL power rankings.

However, that is not quite the case when it comes to the NFL power rankings of Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport.

In his rankings, the Bears land a solid spot at No. 10, but that is one spot below where the Bears ranked record-wise (with tie-breakers) in the entire NFL last season.

Davenport's concern is that the Bears did not do enough to improve their roster this offseason and are heavily reliant on players from last year's team simply improving.

"The Bears will lean more on expected natural improvement than anything else this fall. Whether the franchise's choice to do so is a smart approach remains to be seen," Davenport writes.

"The Bears better hope their young players show marked improvement. Otherwise, Chicago will be a prime regression candidate," he added.

Davenport highlights the high expectations for Caleb Williams, Luther Burden and Colston Loveland, all of whom still have to cement themselves as top-flight players.

Williams and Loveland are no doubt on the cusp of doing just that, but Burden isn't as close, which is a concern because he's going to have a big role in the wake of the D.J. Moore trade.

Another issue Davenport highlights was the team's lack of an addition to help the pass-rush.

Chicago has a trio of question marks with Austin Booker, Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner, and the interior defensive line group doesn't offer much in that department, either.

We also can't forget how the Bears didn't make a significant addition upfront to improve the run defense up the middle.

Knowing what we know about the Bears on both sides of the ball, it's fair to have doubts about their ability to progress in 2026. The promise is no doubt there, but so is the possibility for regression.