6 things to watch for when the Chicago Bears face the Kansas City Chiefs

A wide receiver stepping up outside of Darnell Mooney.

Darnell Mooney is the unquestioned number one wide receiver for the Chicago Bears. After him, there are a whole lot of question marks. Also, there are a lot of injuries pilling up in the wide receiver room.

The Bears signed Bryon Pringle and drafted Velus Jones Jr. to be playmakers but both are not expected to suit up as both are banged up. The Bears traded for former first-round pick N’Keal Harry but he is expected to miss at least eight weeks after needing surgery for a high ankle sprain.

Just because the Chicago Bears are dinged up at wide receiver does not mean someone does not have a chance to shine. Equanimeous St. Brown, who was signed as a free agent in the offseason, is having a good camp.

Former sixth-round pick Dazz Newsome now has a chance to showcase his skills. Veteran Tajae Sharpe is also having a good camp.

The Bears need someone to step up and make some plays in this game, especially for a wide receiver group that is not highly thought of in the NFL.

Dominque Robinson and Trevis Gipson getting to the quarterback

The Chicago Bears have Quinn on one side of the defensive line to rush the passer. Gipson is slated to start on the other side. Gipson had seven sacks last season playing in the a 3-4 defensive front. The Bears are switching to a 4-3 defensive front under Eberflus.

Gipson has a chance to break out in his third season and show he can wreak havoc on the quarterback like what the Bears’ previous front office envisioned when he was drafted in the fifth round in 2020.

Speaking of pass rushers picked in the fifth round, this year’s pick, Dominque Robinson is having an impressive camp. He is still raw for a defensive end as he was converted from a wide receiver to a defensive lineman in college. He possess a lot of traits to be a potential draft-day steal. It will be interesting to see how he does later in the game.

The secondary getting takeaways.

Eberflus is all about getting turnovers. It will be interesting to see if the Bears’ secondary can get some interceptions. More importantly, it would be nice to see if they look better than last season when that was the weakest part of the defense.

Eddie Jackson should get back to being a ball-hawking safety after Poles took Jaquan Brisker in the second round. Brisker should fill that in-the-box, hard-hitting safety role which allows Jackson to roam the field.

Jaylon Johnson is set as the starting cornerback but who starts on the other side of the field is still unknown. Kyler Gordon was the Bears’ first pick in this year’s draft when the corner out of Washington was taken in the second round. He has worked a lot in camp at the nickel cornerback. Kindle Vildor had a forgettable 2021 season but that has not stopped the new coaching staff from giving him reps to start as the other outside cornerback.

Gordon is not expected to play as he is dealing with an injury. Vildor is also dinged up as well. The Bears hopefully can get some clarity on who can provide depth in the secondary against the high-octane Kansas City Chiefs offense.