Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Chicago Bears' key strength for 2025 NFL season shows dramatic shift from past

Originally posted on Chicago Bears on SI | By Bryan Perez | Last updated Sep 1, 2025 1:51 PM ET

One of the last terms a football fan would use to describe the Chicago Bears in recent years is offensive powerhouse. In fact, they've been anything but.

Thanks to a vicious cycle of failed quarterbacks and head coaches, the Bears have struggled to find the right marriage between play caller and QB1 to build a formidable offense. But that could all be about to change in 2025, thanks to the arrival of Ben Johnson as head coach and second-year quarterback, Caleb Williams.

Sure, Williams' rookie season left a lot of meat on the bone, but with Shane Waldron cooking up plays, it's easy to understand why Bears fans ended the year wanting more.

That shouldn't be the case this season. And, believe it or not, even ESPN has the Chicago Bears' offensive skill players as the team's greatest strength.

When was the last time you heard that?

"The Bears added rookie tight end Colston Loveland and wide receiver Luther Burden III to an already stacked group of returning pass catchers that features Rome Odunze, DJ Moore and Cole Kmet," ESPN's Courtney Cronin wrote. "Quarterback Caleb Williams has connected with all five of these players, but arguably his strongest chemistry in camp was built with wideout Olamide Zaccheaus, who arrived on a one-year deal in March. Ben Johnson has plenty of players looking for touches on offense, and that's a good problem to have for the first-year coach."

It really is an impressive group, isn't it? If you've cheered for this team long enough, then you've suffered through the days of Kendall Wright as the beacon of hope at wide receiver. Yes, that Kendall Wright, who played one season for the Bears back in 2017.

This version of the Chicago Bears feels like the closest roster to the team that was once led by Jay Cutler, throwing to the dynamic duo of Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery, while getting big plays out of the backfield from Matt Forte. Even Martellus Bennett got in on the fun.

The only question surrounding the Bears' skill players in 2025 is at running back, where D'Andre Swift will resume his standing as the RB1. He's coming off a disappointing 2024 campaign in which he failed to reach 1,000 rushing yards while averaging a career-worst 3.8 yards per carry. His 65.7 rushing grade from Pro Football Focus was the second-lowest of his career, too.

If Swift gets rolling? And Caleb Williams has time to throw? Watch out. This isn't Matt Eberflus' Bears anymore.

This article first appeared on Chicago Bears on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: