This WCG roundtable series was inspired by this Tweet from our guy Jacob, who gave six 2026 Chicago Bears superlatives for the offseason. We’re going to take them one by one, and we’ll give a couple two tree sentences for each.
We wrap up the series with what we’re most worried about this season.
Jacob Infante: The defensive line – Though admittedly I’m slightly cheating by picking the entire defensive line unit, it’s easily my biggest concern on the Bears’ roster. They struggled to get home with a four-man
rush all season, and they didn’t make any major upgrades up front. If anything holds the Bears back from improving upon 2025, it’ll be that group.
Josh Sunderbruch: Kyler Gordon – The defense tangibly benefits from his presence, but he seems like he just can’t stay healthy.
Ryan Droste: The health of our defensive backs – Jaylon Johnson didn’t look the same after returning from injury last year, and Kyler Gordon is once again dealing with injuries in the offseason. We need both of them to be healthy for the defense to turn it around in 2026.
Sam Householder: The Bears are an offensive team now. That’s hard for some fans to wrap their heads around, and worrying about the defense is warranted. But if the defense is top 12, they can still be a really good team. But this is Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams’ show now.
Bryan Orenchuk: Turnover regression – With an aging Grady Jarrett, ineffective run defender in Gervon Dexter, and a few other options up front along the DL this season to rush passer or stop the run, I’m most worried about teams controlling the clock and scoring points instead of taking the ball back like we did last year. Caleb and Co. may have to score 30+ a game just to have a chance.
Donald Gooch: Kyler Gordon – So much talent, so many soft tissue injuries. Reports out of OTAs are that Gordon is again dealing with yet another soft injury this offseason. If you look up “the best ability is availability” in the football dictionary, you will find Gordon’s picture as the cautionary tale.
Erik Duerrwaechter: Pass rush – On paper, the Bears are taking a big gamble with a revamped DT rotation and no major additions to the DE depth chart as of the writing of this article. Instead, the popular opinion is they’re betting on in-house improvements from players like Austin Booker to emerge as a legit threat adjacent from Montez Sweat. I still think they’re just waiting until the right moment and price to pull the trigger on a major acquisition. Until then, I am not too sure about how much I can expect this group to improve with so many unknowns against a tough schedule. The offense can’t be forced to make miracles happen each and every week this season.
Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.: If healthy, Kyler Gordon has the type of versatility to take the Bears’ defense to another level. That’s why he was made the highest-paid nickelback following his 2024 season. A year ago, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen talked about using him all over the defense, and I want to see that come to fruition in 2026.
Jeff Berckes: The mental health of Bears fans who are freaking out in early summer about hypothetical things. The Bears have the right coach and the right quarterback. It’s the start of something beautiful. Touch some grass, enjoy the summer.
What are you most worried about regarding the 2026 Bears?
