Bears Reporter Warns Chicago Could Become the NFL's Top Regression Team

Possible regression has been a hot topic of conversation around the Chicago Bears this offseason.

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson talks with quarterback Caleb Williams (18) against the Dallas Cowboys during the second half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

All offseason long, the word "regression" has been tossed around quite frequently when it comes to conversations about the Chicago Bears.

The Bears had an upstart 2025 season that saw the team go 11-6, win the NFC North and rack up a playoff win for the first time since 2010 in the first year under head coach Ben Johnson.

While the hope is that the Bears can at least match that showing, we have seen over the past two decades that Chicago has had a tough time putting together good seasons two years in a row.

You have to go all the way back to the 2005 and 2006 seasons for the last time the Bears made the postseason in back-to-back years.

As a result, ESPN's Courtney Cronin isn't ruling out that happening again. She believes the Bears' season will be a success if the Bears can avoid becoming "the NFL's top regression team."

Cronin adds that making the playoffs is the "bare minimum" for Chicago in 2026.

"This season is a success if ... Chicago doesn't become the NFL's top regression team," she wrote. "That means putting away teams far sooner than the final two minutes of the fourth quarter. With the bar set at a division title and playoff win, making the postseason is the bare minimum."

No lies detected here. Regression has to be a concern after what we have witnessed over the past two decades with this franchise and it doesn't help that the Bears will be navigating a very tough division and conference overall.

Of course, Bears fans have bigger aspirations than just making the postseason after the team notched a playoff win in 2025, but at least accomplishing that feat will show the Bears are on on the road to sustained success.

How Bears can avoid regression in 2026

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) stands on the field during training camp at Halas Hall. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

First things first, quarterback Caleb Williams has to take that next step in his career. It doesn't have to be an enormous step, but we need to see the former No. 1 overall pick make progress, and especially when it comes to his accuracy.

Getting help from his pass-catchers is a big part of the equation. The Bears have a ton of promise in the group led by Rome Odunze, Luther Burden and Colston Loveland, but the group is also very young and inexperienced, so that's a concern.

Defensively, the Bears have to buckle down and play better at all three levels, as they simply can't depend on the rate of turnovers they had last season that bailed out the pass-rush, run defense and coverage, all of which just wasn't good enough in 2025.

Chicago finished with the sixth-worst run defense, the seventh-fewest sacks and the 11th-worst pass defense overall.

Better health in the secondary with Jaylon Johnson will help, but Chicago won't have Kyler Gordon for at least four games, and the team has a completely revamped safeties room. We could see two Bears rookies playing a significant roles in Dillon Thieneman, a locked-in starter, and Malik Muhammad, who appears to be Chicago's top choice in the slot with Gordon out.

Last but not least, as Cronin noted in her write-up, the Bears must do a better job putting teams away. The amount of comebacks Chicago pulled off just isn't sustainable.

History suggests that the Bears will regress in 2026, but this team might be in better shape than ever to avoid that with Williams and Johnson at the helm.