Chicago Bears Depth Chart
- NFC North
- Stadium
- Soldier Field
- Head Coach
- Matt Eberflus
- Offensive Coordinator
- Shane Waldron
- Defensive Coordinator
- Eric Washington
- Special Teams Coach
- Richard Hightower
- Defensive Scheme
- 4-3
Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy, who ran the fastest 40-yard dash in the history of the NFL scouting combine in February at 4.21 seconds, is visiting with the Chicago Bears on Monday. The Bears have already traded for Keenan Allen this offseason to pair with DJ Moore in 2024, but they continue to look for additional offensive weapons for USC quarterback Caleb Williams, who they are expected to take first overall in this year's NFL draft. Allen only has one year remaining on his current deal, so it would make sense for the Bears to add a receiver in the draft to pair with Williams if they are unsure if they can sign Allen to a contract extension. The 20-year-old Worthy is obviously a burner and will create problems for opposing defenses with his speed, but his small frame of 165 pounds makes him a big injury risk at the next level.
The Chicago Bears could upgrade at edge rusher in this year's NFL draft by taking either UCLA's Laiatu Latu or Florida State's Jared Verse with the No. 9 overall pick in the first round, but The Athletic's Bruce Feldman thinks they'll go with LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers to give more firepower to rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who they are expected to take first overall. Nabers thoroughly impressed at his pro day workout and dominated for the Tigers in 2023, catching 89 passes for 1,569 yards and 14 touchdowns. "He can separate like nobody else. He has super speed and explosiveness. He's got this big lower half and is so scary in the open field. He is elite with the ball in his hands," one coach said. Having wideouts DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and Nabers would give Williams some serious weapons in his rookie year.
USC quarterback Caleb Williams, the potential No. 1 overall pick in this year's NFL draft, made his top-30 facility visit to the Chicago Bears on Wednesday, according to sources. Williams was in town for dinner on Tuesday night as well. It's likely his only visit with Chicago before they most likely take him with the No. 1 overall pick later this month. The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner is the consensus top QB prospect in this year's draft class. The Bears tipped their hand by already trading Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason, so Williams is fully expected to be taken first overall as Chicago's next franchise signal-caller. Williams' college production fell off in his final year in 2023, but he's still likely to start right away in Week 1 of his rookie season in the NFL this fall.
The Chicago Bears signing of former Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles running back D'Andre Swift was one of the first moves of free agency, and head coach Matt Eberflus suggested he will be a passing game weapon for the organization. "We just felt that we wanted a home-run hitter there. I think D'Andre brings that. We wanted a weapon back -; a guy who could be a weapon out of the backfield," Eberflus said. "I know that in situational football it's very difficult to be able to have the two guys outside covered, two tight ends covered, and then you got another situation where you have the weapon back inside. So that was critical." It sounds like Chicago is planning to utilize Swift out of the backfield more often, which was a role he excelled in while in Detroit. Swift posted just a 10% target share in his lone season in Philadelphia after being at 15.1% in 2022 and 18.4% in 2021. With Chicago almost certainly slated to take USC's Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Swift could see a ton of usage underneath as a receiver while Williams feels out the NFL game.
The NFL announced that this year's Hall of Fame game, the first preseason contest of 2024, on Aug. 1 will feature the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans. The game will feature the upstart Texans, who won a playoff game in 2023 under first-year head coach DeMeco Ryans and rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud against a Bears team that is expected to take USC QB Caleb Williams first overall in the upcoming draft. The league will also hold two games on Christmas Day this year, which falls on a Wednesday. Last year's Christmas Day tripleheader drew historic ratings, with all three games ranking among the top-five Christmas Day NFL games on record, dating back to 1988.