The local Chicago Bears football team has been having a great year so far, with more games to come this season. As of Sunday, November 9, the Bears are 6-3 wins to losses, which puts them in position for making it to this year’s playoffs. Many Chicago fans claim the excelling of the Bears this year is due to major changes the team has made.
So what are the Bears doing this season that’s different from other seasons in the past?
To start, most notably, the Bears have new head coach, Ben Johnson. Coach Johnson was formally the offensive quality control coach for the Detroit Lions and was eventually promoted to offensive coordinator. After hard work and good coaching, on January 21, 2025, Johnson was recruited by the Bears to replace the previous coach, Matt Eberflus.
The Bears have team members on the field as well as the sidelines. The 2025 NFL draft provided the Bears with: 10th pick, Colston Loveland, tight end; 39th pick, Luther Burden, III, wide receiver; 223rd pick, Kyle Monangai, running back; and many more.
On a more recent note, the Bears kicker Carlos Santos has been out for a few weeks this season because of a thigh injury. He is now back and was able to play in the game against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, October 26.
During his two-week absence, the Bears tried out their back up kicker, Jake Moody. Moody made four out of the five field goal attempts during week six against the Washington Commanders. His final field goal won the game for the Bears.
During week 7 against the New Orleans Saints, he made all four field goals. The question many Chicago fans have been asking is, “Which kicker should we use?”
In the 2024-2025 season, the Bears were known as the team that almost always almost wins, but in the season of 2025-2026 the Bears have made last minute comebacks against teams such as the Giants, Bengals, Commanders, and Raiders. Now the Bears are known as the team that almost always wins.
Last year the Bears drafted a new quarterback, Caleb Williams. Chicago was hyped when they heard the new best college quarterback was joining the NFL and getting drafted by the Bears.
Last season, Caleb Williams had a passer rating of 87.8 and 68 sacks taken, which is a 10.8% sack rate. This made Caleb the highest sacked player of 2024. In 2025, stats have changed, and Caleb Williams now has a passer rating of 92.2, sack rate of 5.2%, with only 14 sacks taken so far, making him the least sacked quarterback of 2025!
The present for Bears is bright, and the future may be brighter. Next Sunday, the Bears play the Minnesota Vikings. The Bears can hope for a win as the Vikings are the only team in the NFC North without a winning record. However, the Bears have some tough conference games coming up against the Lions and the Packers. Getting past these teams to win the conference might be a long shot, but a wild card into the playoffs is definitely in reach. Go Bears.
