INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (670 The Score) — As the Bears assess their roster in this pivotal offseason, there’s a great need at wide receiver.
The Bears had the NFL’s last-ranked passing game in 2022, averaging 130.5 yards per contest as quarterback Justin Fields struggled to spark the aerial attack with the team lacking talented targets. With that in mind, coach Matt Eberflus on Tuesday pointed to wide receiver as a position at which the Bears will seek upgrades.
"As a receiver, you got to be a playmaker,” Eberflus said at the NFL Combine. “We saw it in the playoffs, you saw it in the Super Bowl, those guys are making plays in critical moments, and that's what we need."
Fields, who will turn 24 on Sunday, completed 60.4% of his passes for 2,242 yards, 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 15 games last season. The Bears leaned on their league-leading rushing attack in 2022, but their offense as a whole still ranked 28th in total yardage and 23rd in scoring.
Bears tight end Cole Kmet led the Bears with 50 receptions, 544 yards and seven touchdowns. Darnell Mooney was Chicago’s leading wide receiver in 2022, hauling in 40 receptions for 493 yards and two touchdowns over 12 games before he suffered a season-ending ankle injury during a game in late November.
The Bears acquired receiver Chase Claypool prior to the NFL’s trade deadline last Nov. 1, sending a second-round pick (No. 33 overall, which will be the 32nd pick used after the Dolphins forfeited their first-round pick) to the Steelers as part of the deal. Claypool produced just 14 receptions for 140 yards and no scores over seven games with the Bears.
The Bears boast more than $100 million in salary cap space to use in free agency and eight selections in the 2023 NFL Draft, including the No. 1 overall pick.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.
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