The Chicago Bears certainly made the most of their bye week. While head coach Ben Johnson shut down the narrative of this being a revenge game because of last year's Hail Mary, several players clearly had Week 6's matchup against the Washington Commanders marked in their calendars, resulting in a 25-24 win on Monday night.
Running back D'Andre Swift may have been one of the culprits in question. The veteran runner gave the Commanders' usually stout run defense a lot of trouble from start to finish, putting together his strongest outing of the season to date. But while Swift's performance was something that Bears fans have been dying to see this fall, it may have also flipped the script on general manager Ryan Poles' trade deadline plans.
Bears Might Not Want to Trade D'Andre Swift After Breakout Game
It was a much-needed bounce-back performance for Swift, who had been tangled up in trade rumors for weeks now. He wreaked havoc out of the backfield on Monday night, logging 108 rushing yards on 14 carries (7.7 yards per carry). He also hauled in two receptions on three targets for 67 yards and a touchdown. His 175 total scrimmage yards were more than he had in the previous two weeks combined (138).
With that in mind, it may have been enough to convince the team that they don't have to move him anymore. More than that, it might also make them feel that they won't need to give up valuable assets to upgrade the backfield. While players like Alvin Kamara, De'Von Achane, and Breece Hall could've beefed up the RB room, any draft picks that could've been used in those deals can be used to upgrade more pressing positions.
HC Johnson had said that the need to fix the running game wasn't because of a single player, per Sports Illustrated's Gene Chamberlain. He always preached time and patience, as the new offensive line needed more reps together to be at its best, and Week 6 may have proved him right.
It's always nice to see players shake off their woes and put up big numbers, but this might not be sustainable over time, and expecting him to do this every week might be nothing but wishful thinking.
It's not like Swift has ever been a star. He's a slightly above-average running back who averages 4.3 yards per carry and 51.1 rushing yards per game in his career. And if they're not going to give rookie Kyle Monangai a bigger role, this team simply may not have enough to field a dominant rushing attack.
With the trade deadline less than a month away, it'll be interesting to see if the Bears will continue believing in Swift or if they'll look to outside help to help their backfield afloat.