Disappointing doesn’t even begin to describe the year the Chicago Bears had in 2024.
The surprise, head-spinning year that the Washington Commanders had was what many were predicting for Chicago with Caleb Williams as its quarterback. Instead, the team won just five games and suffered a 10-game losing streak in the middle of the season.
While there was plenty of blame to go around, the Bears are optimistic heading into next season with offensive genius Ben Johnson as their new head coach. And alongside that, a change in their wide-receiver room is also making the prediction rounds.
Chicago Bears Predicted To Shuffle Their Wideout Corps
The Bears finished as the 13th-ranked defense in the league on PFSN’s Defense+ metric, and that might be underselling their production on that end. Trying to carry an unpredictable and inconsistent offense took its toll on the unit.
But with a better year from Williams, Chicago should firmly be in the top 10. However, the offense needs major work after finishing 30th in the league on PFSN’s Offense+ metric. The addition of Johnson should lead to a shift in and of itself.
But, some personnel changes might also be on the way. The Sporting News believes one major move would be to get younger in their wide-receiver corps by swapping out Keenan Allen in exchange for Amari Cooper.
“The Bears can move on from Keenan Allen and replace him with the younger Cooper to better complement D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze with route versatility.”
Cooper, ranked 31st in PFSN’s list of top 100 free agents, is among the top five wide receivers available this summer. And for the Bears, the move might make a ton of sense with Cooper’s stock low coming off of one of the worst seasons of his career.
With the Buffalo Bills employing a relatively conservative offensive scheme, Cooper finished the year with the least receiving yards of his career at 547. But he’s coming off of back-to-back 1,000+-yard seasons for the Cleveland Browns, who have no solid quarterback play to speak of.
In contrast to some of his past stops, Cooper wouldn’t have the pressure of facing the opposition’s top cornerback on nearly every play. In fact, in Chicago, he would arguably draw a cover man potentially slotted at No. 3 or lower on the depth chart pretty frequently if Odunze takes the big second-year leap many believe he’s capable of.
The Johnson factor would also potentially be a boon for the chances of a Cooper resurgence. While the veteran receiver has had the good fortune of working with talented offensive play-callers in the past, the Bears’ new head coach is arguably on another level and helped three Lions pass catchers to 700-plus-yard seasons in 2024.
As a result, the upside might be high with Cooper, especially in a system alongside DJ Moore and Rome Odunze. And it would give Williams another reliable pair of hands after finishing as the 33rd-ranked quarterback in the league, according to PFSN’s QB+ metric.
Parting ways with Allen will be a big blow to Chicago. But his 744 yards and seven touchdowns from this past season are something they can make up if the team clicks in the way they’re hoping.