Chicago Bears get promising evaluation in ESPN’s preseason power rankings

In just 13 days, the Chicago Bears will travel to Charlotte to take on the reigning NFC South champion Carolina Panthers and will look to build off a promising 2025-26 campaign. This is a roster that has plenty of talent and a nice mix of youth and veteran leadership compared to past seasons.

As we head into September, training camp and pre-season are over, and the Bears’ 53-man roster has been finalized. This comes with some surprises (per usual) and has put some of the heated roster spot debates to rest. With final cuts being over, the question now remains: where do the Bears stack up with the rest of the league?

Last season, ESPN had Chicago ranked 21st in the NFL at the time of final cuts, with most of the assumed pressure being on QB Caleb Williams to deliver a winning season. With a new head coach and a completely different offense, most talking heads around the league thought Chicago would need some time to work out the kinks.

Needless to say, Williams and company proved their worth in the end, with a promising postseason run that ended at the hands of MVP Matthew Stafford in overtime. Unfortunate, but a massive leap in the grand scheme of things, as Chicago Bears football hasn’t looked this promising in years.

After key departures and high expectations, where do the Bears stand as we head into the 2026-27 season?

ESPN ranks the Chicago Bears 12th in preseason power rankings

Well, that’s quite the jump from last year’s 21st position.

That had plenty to do with second-year head coach Ben Johnson, as it was clear a culture change was needed. Not only does this roster have a plethora of talent and potential, but it also has some great schematic advantages provided by Johnson and his time in Detroit.

ESPN ranked the Bears 12th, one spot behind the division rival Lions, and one spot ahead of the seemingly inevitable Kansas City Chiefs. Courtney Cronin gave her thoughts on the Bears in a short blurb regarding the power rankings.

This feels like a slam dunk. Williams was 58 yards from reaching the 4K threshold in his first season under coach Ben Johnson, and he still managed to set the Bears’ single-season passing record (3,942 yards). Williams threw for less than 200 yards in four games in 2025, so if he has one or two fewer instances of that, he should be at 4,000 yards by mid-December. One focus for Williams this offseason has been improving his accuracy (58.1% completion percentage). That not only will assist the offense’s ability to stay on the field but also increase his production in the passing game.

The obvious point about Williams’ accuracy can’t be understated, as he had one of the lowest in the NFL in 2025, trailing only J.J. McCarthy. He’ll need to take a jump in year three in that regard, all while hopefully becoming the first QB in Bears history to reach 4,000 yards in a single season.

Even with Williams being a bit erratic, he’ll need all the support and encouragement from the fans and organization as he continues to progress. The NFL often changes so much in just one offseason, so it’ll be very interesting to see how the Chicago Bears respond to these larger expectations.

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