It’s been a while since the Chicago Bears had an offseason like 2022. With quarterback Justin Fields entering his second season in the NFL and his first as the Bears’ unquestioned starter, the natural expectation was that general manager Ryan Poles would do whatever he could to strengthen the offense around him. And while Poles has added pieces to the offense in free agency and the NFL Draft, he hasn’t made that headline-grabbing transaction.
According to ESPN, Poles’ failure to bulk up the Bears’ offensive line was his biggest offseason mistake.
“Poles’ hands were tied by the cap situation and the fact that the Bears were down first- and fourth-round picks from last year’s Justin Fields trade,” ESPN’s Bill Barnwell wrote. “If there’s any place I would have wanted to see them spend money, though, it would have been on protecting their young quarterback. They made a pair of low-cost offensive line moves in signing Lucas Patrick from the Packers and Dakota Dozier from the Vikings, but Fields projects to play behind one of the worst units in football this season.”
