How would you react if the Chicago Bears, led by first-round draft pick Mitch Trubisky, came to your house to personally deliver your season tickets for the upcoming year?
I don’t know about you, but if a handful of professional football players showed up at my door I would immediately wonder if I have enough food, drinks, and snacks to be a proper host. These are professionals after all. Once everyone was settled, then we would talk about two-minute drill strategies and what not. You know, like normal folks do on a Saturday afternoon in July.
With Trubisky officially in the fold, the rookie quarterback is going to find himself in a bit of a pickle. Chris Emma of CBS Chicago wonders how the Bears will divvy up reps between starter Mike Glennon and the other quarterbacks on the roster – including Trubisky. It’s a question worth asking and a situation worth investigating and dissecting as training camp gets progresses. This might turn out to be offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains’ biggest training camp challenge, as he’ll need to find enough reps to get Glennon acclimated enough to lead starting in Week 1, for backup Mark Sanchez to know enough to take over in a pinch, and to get Trubisky up-to-speed with how to operate a pro style offense.
Again, this scenario leaves Connor Shaw on the outside looking in. He was already waived once during the offseason, but brought back in when it was learned that Sanchez suffered a knee injury that would keep him from participating in offseason training activities. For what it’s worth, Shaw is still confident about his future.
Injuries took their toll on the 2016 Bears, and they’ll likely play a factor in whatever happens in 2017. In fact, the team’s current injury situation is already a cloud over the 53-man roster projection. ESPN Chicago’s Jeff Dickerson sorts through it all and takes a shot at an early roster projection, which he navigated carefully because injuries to Zach Miller and Danny Trevathan from 2016 that have lingered into this season makes it difficult to project the team’s roster at this point.
Offensive lineman Hroniss Grasu is one of several Bears who ended last season on injured reserve looking to round into form and make a positive impact this season. Grasu, a third-round pick in 2015 who played in eight games as a rookie, will have his work cut out for him as he learns a new position in hopes of gaining the flexibility that could make earn him a roster spot. While asking three burning questions about the Bears’ offensive line, CSN Chicago’s JJ Stankevitz notes that Grasu could be a victim of a roster crunch if the Bears only keep eight offensive linemen.
Cameron Meredith is a fantasy player to keep an eye on in the NFC North, according to Dan Schneier of Pro Football Focus. Meredith is a fantasy darling of sorts because of the narrative surrounding him as the team’s No. 1 receiver heading into camp, which is partially due to his success last season and some small sample size stats. HOWEVER, Meredith will need to prove his place as a top receiver during his training camp. First, he’ll need to show he’s healthy after an offseason thumb injury and his quarterback(s) will need to show faith in him. Meredith could end up as the Bears’ top receiving target, but we don’t know anything about Glennon’s tendencies with this particular group of receivers at this point. Taking Meredith before his 106.2 average draft position comes with its fair share of risk.
Save for running back Jordan Howard, the Bears aren’t a great team if you’re looking for fantasy football’s best prospects. But at least they’re not the worst. Pro Football Focus ranks the Bears 22nd in the 32-team league. Ranking behind the Bears are the Jaguars, Broncos, Texans, Chiefs, Browns, Vikings, 49ers, Jets, Ravens, and Rams. So if you’re looking for fantasy firepower, you would be wise to avoid stacking players on teams ranking worse than the Bears on this list.
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