Despite Mitch Trubisky’s scene-stealing debut, the Chicago Bears made no movement up the charts on ESPN’s power rankings.
The first round of power rankings was released after the first grouping of preseason games, and the Bears ranked 29th – which is exactly where they were after the NFL Draft.
Here is how ESPN rationalized its ranking:
“The Bears are the only NFL team with at least $18 million in guarantees committed to two quarterbacks, so all eyes will be on the battle between Mike Glennon and Mitchell Trubisky this preseason. It’s also a big investment for a team that ranked 24th in points allowed last season, all things considered.”
The New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons, Seattle Seahawks, Dallas Cowboys, and Green Bay Packers are sitting pretty in the top-five. Meanwhile, only the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and New York Jets are rated lower than the Bears in this installment of power rankings. The Minnesota Vikings (17th) and Detroit Lions (19th) round out the rankings of NFC North teams.
During the offseason, ESPN’s top football analysts believed the Bears to struggle over the next three years – even though an argument can be made the team is in a prime position to make improvements moving forward. Viewing through a short-term lens, Pro Football Talk ranked the Bears 30th in the site’s preseason rankings because of the question marks at quarterback.
There’s (almost) nowhere to go but up, but don’t expect the Bears to make any major moves up the charts until the first-string offense can string together some touchdown drives, and the late-game defense tightens up.