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Chicago Bears named NFC North's biggest offseason winner

Originally posted on Chicago Bears on SI | By Bryan Perez | Last updated May 11, 2025 2:35 PM ET

Take a bow, Ryan Poles.

The Chicago Bears' 2025 offseason continues to be the biggest headline in the league, and for good reason. General manager Ryan Poles went to work quickly with the hiring of Ben Johnson as head coach, and the incredible rehab job he did on the offensive line was as close to a football miracle as it gets.

And let's not forget the weapons he added for second-year quarterback Caleb Williams through the 2025 NFL Draft, too. Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III will have their fair share of highlights as rookies.

All of these offseason moves have set the stage for what should be a return to winning football in Chicago. In fact, the Bears have made more upgrades than any team in the NFC North, and have positioned themselves to make a run at the Detroit Lions... this year.

In a recent breakdown of every division's biggest offseason winner, the Bears were dubbed the kings of the NFC North offseason.

"The Chicago Bears hired Ben Johnson, one of the league's top offensive play-callers, as their head coach," Bleacher Report's Moe Moton wrote. "In doing so, they also weakened the division-leading Detroit Lions, who fielded a top-five scoring offense with Johnson calling the plays for the last three years.

"In free agency, the Bears spent money and resources to mold the offense in Johnson's vision. They completely transformed the interior of the offensive line, signing Drew Dalman and trading for two-time All-Pro Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson."

The Chicago Bears' upgrades weren't limited to the offense, either. Poles committed free agency dollars into Dayo Odeyingbo and Grady Jarrett as well as a second-round pick in defensive lineman Shemar Turner.

"Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen can elevate the Bears' 13th-ranked scoring defense into the top 10," Moton wrote. "As the New Orleans Saints' play-caller, he fielded a top-nine scoring unit in four of the last five years.

"Even in a division with three double-digit-win teams from the previous season, Chicago can find a way to make the playoffs this year."

While most Chicago Bears fans would be happy with incremental improvement -- an above-.500 season would be nice -- the playoffs are a back-of-the-mind expectation at this point.

How could they not be? With the highest-profile head coaching hire and the highest-profile quarterback prospect aligned on a roster with the most offseason improvements, the time is now for the Bears to make a run at the postseason.

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

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