Chicago Bears: Looking ahead to preseason game vs. Broncos

What will the starting linebackers look like?

One of the biggest questions over the next few days is whether the Bears and rookie linebacker Roquan Smith will make any headway on a deal. At the moment, it doesn’t appear as though either side is speaking to one another. Hopefully that changes, because the inside linebacker play against the Bengals was atrocious.

Aside from Smith, Danny Trevathan should also be on the field, assuming he truly is fully healthy. The Bears are at the point, now, where they need to get this corps on the field together and in some live-game action. If Aaron Lynch suits up and plays, he should get some time with the starters as well.

If Smith is still unsigned, then Nick Kwiatkoski will once again make it out there as the starter. I’m not overly concerned with Kwiatkoski starting, as he’s been a consistent improvement since entering the league. There were some spotty plays on his part against the Bengals, but he is by far a better option than John Timu at this point.

The one constant looks to be that Leonard Floyd has come to play. He had a thrilling outing against the Bengals, forcing Andy Dalton to make an errant throw which ended up being taken the other way for a score by Kyle Fuller. Floyd’s presence in this group could end up being the one steady force for the Bears. Hopefully, though, the rest of the core gets squared away before Week 1.