Bear Digest

Four Lessons for Bears from Patriots' Super Bowl Disaster

The Bears' To-Do list to get back to the Super Bowl should now be obvious.
Pete Martuneac|
David Banks-Imagn Images

In this story:

Chicago Bears

The noise around Super Bowl LX in the week leading up to the game felt more muted than it's been in recent years. The matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots had all the makings of a plodding, defensive showdown, and that's exactly what we got. At one point in the third quarter, the Patriots had more punts than completed passes, and neither team found the endzone until the fourth quarter.

But there are no style points in the NFL. The Seahawks' dominant Super Bowl victory over the Patriots counts all the same, and Seattle is officially the team to beat in 2026. But the NFC promises to be once again a conference crowded with title contenders, and the Chicago Bears will be among them.

Despite a heartbreaking Divisional round loss to the Rams that ended their season, the Bears are much closer to a Super Bowl than the haters may think. They already have some advantages over the Patriots, and now they can take a few lessons from the 2025 runners-up and their blowout loss in the Super Bowl as the Bears go through the offseason.

1. Left tackle is a big need for the Bears

New England's starting left tackle, rookie Will Campbell, got whipped seven ways to Sunday in the Super Bowl. He gave up 14 pressures to Seattle alone, and his 29 pressures allowed this postseason are the most ever recorded by NextGenStats. He may have been a rookie, but a player selected fourth overall is supposed to be much better than that.

If the Bears want to earn a spot in Super Bowl LXI, finding a replacement for Ozzy Trapilo at left tackle will be paramount. Remember, Trapilo suffered a ruptured patellar tendon at the end of the Bears' miraculous Wild Card win over the Packers, and he may not be available until late in the 2026 season. General manager Ryan Poles will have to find himself a capable starter to fill in and potentially take over Trapilo's spot for good.

2. Waves of pass rushers beat one dominant player

Following last year's Super Bowl, when Philadelphia's defensive line overwhelmed Kansas City, Ryan Poles said that he saw the value of having what he called "waves of pass rushers" to send after the quarterback versus having just one dominant pass rusher. Super Bowl LX only confirmed this theory as we watched Seattle live in New England's backfield with a collection of good-not-great defensive linemen.

To that end, I think any Bears fan hoping for a blockbuster trade for Maxx Crosby or Myles Garrett will be disappointed. Montez Sweat is that kind of good-not-great defensive end that Seattle unleashed on Sunday, and Austin Booker showed that kind of potential once he got healthy. The Bears can add two more quality defensive linemen with each of their first two draft picks, if they choose, and they'll be getting Dayo Odeyingbo back, too.

There may not be one particular name on Chicago's defense who will strike fear into the hearts of offenses, but the Bears may be a piece or two away from fielding the latest version of the Monsters of the Midway.

3. Throwaways beat sacks and turnovers

Much ballyhoo has been made about Caleb Williams' awful completion percentage in 2025 (58.1%), and it's true that that number needs to get better in 2026. But after watching Drake Maye in Super Bowl LXI, I'll take all the throwaways in the world over a performance like that. Maye was sacked six times for a loss of 43 yards, gave up a strip-sack, and threw two bad interceptions, including a pick-six. While his offensive line earned a lot of blame for that performance, Maye did himself no favors by holding onto the ball and skipping sound mechanics.

The fact is that Williams' completion percentage doesn't really matter. He led the league in throwaways, after all, because he learned that it's better to lose a down than to take a sack. Advanced stats like EPA (Expected Points Added) capture this nicely, and EPA is a stat that Ben Johnson said early last year was something he wanted Williams and the offense to focus on.

At the end of the day, a lower completion percentage beats brutal sacks and fumbles, especially in the postseason.

4. The Bears got the 2024 draft right

In 2024, the narrative was that the Bears should have drafted Jayden Daniels with the first overall pick. In 2025, Drake Maye's MVP-caliber season created a new narrative that the Bears should have drafted him instead. It's true that both quarterbacks have now taken their team further in the postseason than Williams, but make no mistake: Williams still has by far the highest ceiling of this bunch.

Whenever the Bears faced a multiple-score deficit this postseason, no one ever doubted that Caleb Williams could still find a way to win. Like all the greatest pro athletes, Williams has that X-factor that allows him to find another level of brilliance just when all hope appears to be lost. Daniels and Maye have both had success so far in the NFL, but neither one has shown the kind of clutch gene that has already become a feature of Williams' game. In fact, both quarterbacks put up stinkers when they ran into a truly better team.

Forget all the hot takes and narratives you've heard over the last two seasons. The Bears got the best quarterback from a highly talented 2024 class, and Year 2 with Ben Johnson is going to settle this debate once and for all.

More Chicago Bears News:

Sign Up For the Bears Daily Digest - OnSI’s Free Chicago Bears Newsletter

Published | Modified
Pete Martuneac
PETE MARTUNEAC

A former Marine and Purdue Boilermaker, Pete has been covering the Chicago Bears since 2022 as a senior contributor on BearsTalk. He lives with his wife, two kids and loyal dog.

Home/News