One Off Season to Determine the Next Decade

What was evident after this year in the NFC is how open the future of the conference is. While they weren't a story for competitive reasons, the Chicago Bears head into the off season in a position to insert themselves into the future of their conference. With the top pick in the draft, north of 100 million in cap space and Justin Fields showing he can be the franchise quarterback the pressure quickly heated up on general manager Ryan Poles. This is why he was brought to lead this franchise, but the stakes are even higher than just upping the talent around Fields. The next decade in the NFC is at stake.

The NFC finished as the Eagles, 49ers, Vikings, Bucs, Cowboys, Giants and Seahawks. Behind them were the Lions and Packers along with the Commanders in a solid year from the NFC East. The Falcons, Rams, Panthers, Cardinals and Saints made up the bottom of the conference. Unlike the AFC and the young quarterbacks that are fueling the top heavy conference the NFC is transitioning and that is where the Bears' opportunity is.

You need a quarterback to win in the NFL and if you cut the timeline down to just two or three years, the NFC has a whole lot of questions. Immediately, you can say the Eagles look set with Jalen Hurts and all the talent they've surrounded him with. Dak Prescott is locked in for the Cowboys and there's a lot of talent in Dallas. I would argue San Francisco will be there despite their uncertainty of QB because of Kyle Shanahan and the way the roster is built. After that...who do you feel confident will be competitive in just a few years?

Looking at the rest of the playoff picture, Kirk Cousins and the Vikings had a solid season. Cousins is 34 and still needs to show he can win big games. Having Dalvin Cook and Justin Jefferson allows any QB to have a successful setup, but who will be the next guy? Not to mention they're in a bloodbath of cap cuts. Tampa Bay was a mess this year and now Tom Brady has called it quits. Do we think they still have that kind of success without the GOAT at the helm? New York handed out a big contract to Daniel Jones, as the Eagles are expected to do shortly with Hurts. While Brian Daboll has done an outstanding job I think the success is in spite of Jones instead of because him. Who doesn't love the Geno Smith story, but is this year sustainable? He's already 32 years old. Seattle also has a top pick, thanks to the Broncos, and will have to make the call to get the next guy or load up and see what Geno can do.

Going through the seven playoff teams there are two quarterbacks that'll be around and the 49ers because of the team. After that, what do the Packers do with Aaron Rodgers? It seems like he's not going to be around next season, but what do they have in Jordan Love? Not playing him down the stretch was a short-sighted decision that very well could set the franchise back multiple years. The Panthers have given up a haul for the #1 pick, which greatly benefited the Bears, and the Saints won the Derek Carr sweepstakes. Will the Panthers get it right, especially after trading their top WR, and what do the Saints look like as a team that has perpetually been in cap space hell? Atlanta gave Desmond Ridder a look but it's still very early.

The Lions are a great story but are still working on shaking the losing culture. Jared Goff is a professional QB but is he the guy that leads them to ultimate success? Washington has cut Carson Wentz and seems to be done with with Taylor Heinicke starting, so where does that really leave them? The Rams are a wild card as injuries and their aggressive ways culminated in an awful season. Now Aaron Donald has retired and reports are that everyone is on the block as they look to enter into a rebuild.

Unlike all the rest of the teams in a bad season, the Arizona Cardinals are hard to figure out. Do they have their guy in Kyler Murray? Any press that comes out about him seems to be bad and point to an immature player who can't lead a franchise. Now, they've made a coaching change and it has been reported they're looking to move DeAndre Hopkins. Much like the Rams the Cardinals are a wild card but, unlike the injuries ruining the Rams' season, there aren't excuses that give you as much room for hope. However, a good coach can make all the difference, but going with the young defensive coach seems unlikely to deal with Murray.

This is why this off season is so crucial for the Chicago Bears. They have a young QB, the toughest task to check off the list, but the rest of the roster needs an upgrade. There was an easy track record for the Bears to follow; see the Bills adding Stefon Diggs and the Dolphins adding Tyreek Hill, Trevor Lawrence getting weapons. That elevates your young QB. Emulating what the Eagles have done was the obvious course of action but the question was could Poles pull it off? He entered the off season with the most resources of any team but you have to still make the right decisions when it comes to adding players.

The first move of the off season is a big win for the Windy City faithful. The Bears moved from one to nine in the upcoming draft and also got the 61st pick, a 2024 1st, a 2025 2nd and D.J. Moore. An absolute haul that loads up their pick stash, now with ten picks, but got their top receiver. Priority number one was to get Fields a top pass catcher and Poles was able to do it all in one move. Let's not gloss over the fact that the Panthers' pick could put them in a similar position next year also.

In one move Poles stockpiled picks and got his franchise QB a top WR. Stage one is done but free agency is about to begin and is stage two in this very crucial off season. With still around 75 million in cap space Poles can now go to work in the trenches and fill a few more roster holes before the clock starts ticking down on the 2023 draft. After having the worst record in the NFL Poles can put his team in position to truly be able to just draft the best player available.

Control of a wide open NFC with an uncertain future is on the table for Poles and the Chicago Bears. The NFC North could look dramatically different next season, depending on what happens with Rodgers, and how much longer does Cousins have in Minnesota? The Bears could put themselves in position to sit atop the NFC North and that guarantees a playoff spot. More than that though, this off season could put Chicago near the top of the entire NFC as long as Justin Fields is under center. It's not just about being more competitive, the future of the NFC is there for the Bears to grab.