The Chicago Bears and the rest of the NFC are understandably chasing the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. While it was a dominant run for Seattle, it appears the Bears are already making up ground on the franchise due to a coaching staff that has been picked over and now has an underwhelming hire in new offensive coordinator Brian Fleury. The former San Francisco 49ers tight ends coach worked with George Kittle, who was already a star, but never developed a clear second option behind the veteran.
A lack of developing talent at the position he was put in charge of leaves plenty of reasons for pause among Seattle fans, and excitement for Chicago's supporters. Not only is this hiring underwhelming, but the Seahawks are losing offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to the Las Vegas Raiders as their next head coach. As great as the Seattle defense might have been, it was the genius of Kubiak that rebuilt Sam Darnold's confidence and pushed the Seattle offense to the needed unit to win it all.
Losing this aids in the belief that a Caleb Williams-led offense can win the NFC and dethrone the Seahawks in the 2026 season. While we are far from meaningful snaps at this moment, it looks like it will be a three-team race in the conference with the Bears, Seahawks, and Los Angeles Rams appearing to be the most impressive rosters heading into the offseason.
Bears Already Making up Ground on Defending Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks
While the Bears do have roster concerns of their own, on top of losing OC Declan Doyle, the franchise is far better equipped to deal with these changes. There is not only a myriad of young talent rostered, but head coach Ben Johnson calls plays, lessening the blow of losing your OC leaving town. The same cannot be said for Seattle, though.
The Seahawks will also be dealing with the pressure of being the standard that is hunted in both the offseason and the 2026 campaign itself. No longer will Seattle slip under the radar; the franchise is now the hunted. Chicago closing ground before roster movement has even begun is a promising start and points to what should be an exciting offseason.
Not only are the Bears making up ground with coaching changes, but the franchise has a young roster at their disposal that should feature many of its key contributors taking a step forward in the 2026 season. The same cannot be said of Seattle, closing the gap all the more and adding to Chicago's ever-increasing Super Bowl aspirations.