Why the Bears' Above Average Roster Age is Actually Their Biggest 2026 Advantage

NFL teams get better press for being younger, but the Bears may have threaded the needle just right.

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Age is one of the most important numbers in a league that requires as much physicality as the NFL, with youth being valued over experience. The Green Bay Packers have been the toast of many an NFL analyst for reaching the playoffs in consecutive seasons as one of the youngest teams in the league. The Chicago Bears, meanwhile, feature an above-average roster age, but that may actually be a massive advantage in 2026.

The core is more important than the team as a whole

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NFL analyst Ian Hartitz posted a graphic showing each team's average roster age to his X account on Wednesday, and it had the Bears checking in at No. 23 with an average roster age of 26.25 years. On the surface, this looks like a problem for Chicago. Older players means a shorter Super Bowl window, after all.

But average roster age is not the be-all and end-all. More important than the roster as a whole is its core, especially on offense. In that regard, the Bears are as young as anyone. Caleb Williams is 24, Rome Odunze is 23, and Luther Burden and Colston Loveland are both 22. These are the guys who will power a Super Bowl run, and they haven't even reached their primes yet.

As for the defense, it gets a little more complicated, but still nothing to fret about. Jaylon Johnson and Montez Sweat may be older at 27 and 29, respectively, but general manager Ryan Poles has balanced this out with an infusion of youth at their position groups. Rookie Dillon Thieneman is only 21, while Austin Bookers is just 23 despite entering his third NFL season.

The Bears will have youth and experience soon

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Of course, youth alone is not sufficient to create a Super Bowl-caliber roster. Youth must be augmented with experience, especially in the playoffs. This is another roster-building philosophy that Poles has followed, and the example can be seen in two players: Case Keenum and Grady Jarrett.

Poles caught some flak in 2024 when he failed to bring in an experienced quarterback after drafting Caleb Williams, but he seems to have learned his lesson. Keenum came to Halas Hall in 2025 to serve mainly as a QB mentor, and he's returning in 2026 to continue in that role. As for Jarrett, he's one of the most highly regarded defensive tackles in the NFL. Even if he's lost a step as he enters his twelfth NFL season, he can provide invaluable mentoring to Chicago's young defensive tackle core: Gervon Dexter Sr. (25), Shemar Turner (23), and Jordan van den Berg (24).

Complexity of Ben Johnson's system becomes more of a benefit

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While younger players can typically operate with more speed and quickness than their older teammates, they can also have a harder time grasping an NFL playbook, especially one as notoriously complex as Ben Johnson's offense. But now Williams and the rest of the offensive core, Odunze, Burden, and Loveland, are another year older and another year wiser. They should have a far easier time not only digesting the playbook in training camp but also executing whatever new wrinkles Johnson throws in for Year 2 once football is being played again.

Johnson has already proven that elite coaching is worth millions of dollars in cap space, now imagine what his offense can look like when it's being run by young guys with a year of experience under their belts.

Dynasties are built on short-term veterans mixed with a young core

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Some fans and analysts will say it's way too early to talk about a Chicago Bears dynasty, but Ben Johnson told his players that he wants to build a dynasty even before his first training camp with the team. To his credit, Ryan Poles seems to be constructing the roster in exactly the way needed to reach that lofty goal, and that is a young core surrounded by short-term veterans.

Look at the Dallas Cowboys of the 1990's. Troy Aikman and Michael Irvin were only 25 when they won their first Super Bowl in 1992; Emmitt Smith was 23. This was considered the Cowboys' young offensive core. Meanwhile, Tony Casillas joined the team at age 28 ahead of the 1991 season and helped anchor a ferocious defensive line, while tight end Jay Novacek signed on at age 30 a year before. Likewise, Deion Sanders joined the Cowboys in Week 2 of their 1995 Super Bowl season at age 28, bringing more experience to their secondary.

That's the model the Bears are following, and Bears fans are doubtlessly hoping to see a similar track record of success. They have their young offensive core in Williams, Odunze, Burden, and Loveland. Now it's up to Ryan Poles to surround them with enough experienced veterans to guide the Bears back to the Promised Land.

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