Chicago Bears: Are they building a dynasty?

The Chicago Bears have seen drastic improvement from 2017 to 2018. Are they building a dynasty? The players seem to think so.

The Chicago Bears have been a hot topic all offseason as the team transitioned from a mediocre, almost talentless team in 2016 and 2017 to a powerhouse in 2018. Ryan Pace has made drastic changes throughout the entire roster. He stripped it down, kept whatever was worth keeping and built it back up again. Now, this offseason has been one for the ages here in Chicago.

During an interview on 670 the Score on Monday, Ryan Pace was asked to comment on the status of the Chicago Bears. More specifically a comment was said to him about the players and staff throwing out the term “dynasty” when talking about the team this season and the team’s future.

Pace spoke about how he was excited to see the growth and development of the young players. He made a point to talk about how happy it makes him seeing all the different jerseys around the city. We are not talking about everyone only wearing Brian Urlacher or Brandon Marshall jerseys anymore. You see Tarik Cohen, Eddie Jackson and Anthony Miller jerseys on fans of all ages.

This is important to note because it goes to show how well the Bears have evaluated talent. It shows how the team has not only solid veteran presences like Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks, but the young guys are showing up and making a difference. That is the chemistry and equation needed to win Super Bowls.

Pace also made it a point to talk about how there are not any egos. From the players to the staff, egos are checked at the door. Paraphrasing, “when you have been around other teams that do this, you get a sense that something special is about to happen. That is what is happening here.

I could not help but wonder if this was a comment referring to John Fox. Fox has seemed very petty when it comes to the Chicago Bears and his constant negative opinions about the team during his time on ESPN. Could he be the ego Pace is hinting at during his comments?

Pace goes on to talk about how Matt Nagy and he read a book every offseason. This year they read “Legacy” by James Kerr. The book is about the All Blacks, New Zealand rugby team. The team has gone undefeated more than 75 percent of the time in their international matches over the last 100 years. Pace and Nagy used the lessons from the book and applied them to the Chicago Bears.

Even though football and rugby are different, emulating one of the most successful sports franchises in the world is probably not a bad idea. This Bears team is talented from basically top to bottom. Areas the team showed weakness in 2018 have been addressed via free agency and the draft.

Does a team need to be able to win multiple Super Bowls to be a dynasty? Could becoming a perennial playoff team and dominating the NFC North be enough? Everyone’s opinions and interpretations are different and becoming the next New England Patriots is unlikely.

Using the term dynasty at this point is getting ahead of ourselves, but to think the Bears are going to fall off is plain ignorant. This team is talented enough to win the Super Bowl in 2019. Even better, the team is set up to have long-term, sustainable success and contend in the future.

Dynasty May be too strong of a word for some right now, but how about juggernaut? No? Maybe just dominant then? Alright, enough with the labels. I look forward to re-evaluating this interpretation again next offseason. Until then, let us all enjoy what should be another fun season.