Hello, Chicago Bears fans! Today, we continue the installment of articles this offseason, where I look at benchmarks/milestones for individual Chicago Bears players in the 2026 season and give my prediction on whether they will overachieve or underachieve those benchmarks. Today, we will look at our next five over/under scenarios for the Bears’ individual achievements:
#1 Over / Under D’Andre Swift 1100 rushing yards
Gooch Call: UNDER!
I will be the first to admit I underestimated D’Andre Swift in the 2025 season. His productive season with the Eagles
seemed to have been entirely a product of their offensive scheme, and in his season with the Bears, he saw a nearly full yard decline in his average production (4.6 yards to 3.8 yards). Swift would prove all of us wrong in his first season under Ben Johnson with the Bears, posting 1087 total yards and an amazing 4.9 yards per carry average. He also posted nine touchdowns. My prediction, though, has less to do with Swift’s productivity and more to do with my bullishness on Kyle Monangai. I think Monangai is going to take carries away from Swift this season, and while I expect Swift to be a productive back, I am betting he posts a total yards count below 1000 yards in the 2026 season. My prediction for Swift in 2026: 950 total yards, and a 4.3 yards per carry average.
#2 Over / Under Luther Burden 1000 receiving yards
Gooch Call: UNDER!
I am full on bullish on Luther, but it isn’t denigrating him to put his number below 1000 receiving yards in his sophomore campaign. And doing so really has nothing to do with his ability – it’s about two things: 1) Ben Johnson’s offense is run-heavy, and 2) there are a bunch of mouths to feed in terms of catching balls for the Chicago Bears in 2026. We can’t view Luther in isolation – he is competing for targets with Rome, Loveland, Kmet, Walker, Thomas, and Roush. BJ’s offense is designed to spread the ball around. In an offense where Burden was an exclusive target, I’d expect him to easily eclipse 1000 yards. But instead, he will be a dynamic weapon in the Bears’ offense, capped somewhere in the range of 900 yards on the season.
#3 Over / Under Rome Odunze 10 touchdowns
Gooch Call: OVER!
And if I irritated you with my previous two picks, let me make the case for this optimistic call. Rome had five touchdowns in his first five games in 2025. A foot injury hampered his production from that point forward. With Loveland terrifying defenses in the middle of the endzone, Rome is going to have ample red zone opportunities in 2026. I think he’s going to give us a dozen touchdowns in 2026 and close out any questions about whether he was worth the 9th pick overall.
#4 Over / Under Montez Sweat 10 sacks
Gooch Call: UNDER!
I’m a Montez Sweat stan, but his forte isn’t securing sacks on the quarterback. Sweat’s value is being a plus defender against the run and being a good overall pass rusher on passing downs. If Montez gives us nine sacks in 2026, I will be more than pleased with that production.
#5 Over / Under Colston Loveland, 8 touchdowns
Gooch Call: OVER!
I can’t tell you how bullish I am on Colston Loveland’s production in the 2026 season. My argument in favor of Rome’s TD production goes twice over for Colston Loveland. He is a massive size and speed mismatch in the inner third of the field, and I expect him to expand on his amazing rookie campaign and truly test “all-pro” heights in his sophomore season. If you think 9 touchdowns is being bullish on Loveland, fair enough. But you’ll have to forgive me if I choose to BEAR DOWN on my prediction for 9 Loveland touchdowns in the 2026 season.
But what do you think about these over/under predictions? Do you have over/under props you would like to put a stake in the ground for? Tell us about it in the comments below!
