4 reasons Bears should be concerned about 49ers in Week 1

As a result, Bears fans have plenty of reasons to be nervous this year. Chicago is loaded with question marks. And in Week 1 against the 49ers, many of the questions will be tested.

Here are four reasons the Chicago Bears should be concerned about the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1.

Nick Bosa vs. Braxton Jones and Larry Borom

This one's obvious, right? There's an elite NFL star who's regarded as one of the league's premier pass-rushers going against a rookie and second-year offensive tackle, each of whom were day-three draft picks. And while draft pedigree isn't the be-all-end-all, it provides some context for how much of a mismatch this is.

Bosa will get his. There's no doubt he's going to have a handful of reps that force Fields to run for his life. But as the Bears' quarterback said this week, that's to be expected. Jones and Borom aren't going to win every rep. Chicago just has to hope they win more than they lose.

Trey Lance is a great unknown

Lance hasn't had a great summer. Training camp reports haven't been great, and he's been spotty in preseason games. Jimmy Garoppolo is back, too. But the No. 3 overall pick from the 2021 NFL draft has high-end athletic traits and an incredibly strong arm. He can make all the throws, and when a play breaks down, he can kill defenses with his legs.

There isn't enough tape on Lance for the Bears to come up with a perfect strategy to stop him. It's bad luck that the Bears are facing Lance this early in the season. Teams that square off against the 49ers later in the year will have film they can study to prepare. In Week 1, it'll be up to coach Matt Eberflus and defensive coordinator Alan Williams to lean on experience for how to stop players with Lance's traits.

Where are big plays for Chicago's offense coming from?

The 49ers operate a slow and methodical run-oriented offense. In fact, they have one of the NFL's slowest play pace over the last couple of seasons. The point? There won't be as many opportunities for Fields and the Bears offense to score points, and with the offensive line concerns likely forcing Fields off script and outside the pocket, players like Darnell Mooney and Byron Pringle have to deliver on big plays.

Mooney seems like a safe bet to do his part. He's an elite route-runner with top-shelf speed. The 49ers defense is well aware of that, however, which means there has to be a next man up. Equanimeous St. Brown doesn't have the downfield speed to flip the field and Velus Jones Jr."s hamstring injury will likely force him to miss his first game.

That leaves Pringle and Dante Pettis as the options realistically available for Fields to target. It's hard to get too excited about that, but it'll be up to both pass-catchers to make the most of their opportunity.

Kyle Shanahan vs. Matt Eberflus

Not much has been made of the coaching matchup for the Bears in Week 1, but there's some reason for concern in Eberflus" debut. The rookie head coach is already proving to be a fantastic hire, but Sunday will be the first time he's in charge of more than defensive play-calling. He's now in charge of everything, and until we see Eberflus in the eye of the storm, Sunday's matchup feels like a coaching advantage for San Francisco.

Shanahan is widely regarded as one of the best offensive play-callers in the NFL. He's creative and his system is time-tested. Perhaps, he's a little overrated boasting a career record of 39-42. But no matter how you view his resume, he does have 81 regular season games under his belt. Experience matters, especially in a game that could come down to a coaching decision or two.

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