Windy City Gridiron
The 2025 season was the type of storybook that most Chicago Bears fans had dreamed of over the last 15-plus years. Although it didn’t end in a Super Bowl parade, the strides made from an ineffective three-year tenure under former head coach Matt Eberflus to Year 1 of Ben Johnson were nothing short of impressive. Now comes the hard part: Sustained success.
Part of sustaining success is getting notable contributions from unlikely sources. Last year, the Bears had plenty of that. In fact, six of my 10 breakout candidates from last year did break out indeed. For as fun as last year was, the offseason and last year’s success will set a different stage for 2026. For starters, Chicago did not have nearly as many resources as fans have been accustomed to. That alone means fewer new names and high-profile additions that can help project the team’s floor. Secondly, whenever a club wins the division and a playoff game, its roles switch from hunter to hunted.
With the offseason no longer being the only time where the Bears “win”, the next step in their quest for a Super Bowl must come from within. Here are my 10 breakout candidates for the 2026 season.
This is Part 1: players 10-6. Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow!
10. iOL Luke Newman
A backup interior offensive lineman on this list, you might ask? Hear me out.
Yes, Newman is not projected to start this season, but the coaching staff continues to speak highly about him. On top of that, the Bears’ offensive line was remarkably healthy last season. As great as that was, counting on it for a second straight season would be wishful thinking. For reference, last year was the first time that Jonah Jackson started and finished every regular-season game in his career. The last time he got close was during his first two years in Detroit, when he started 16 games each season. While I’m not in the business of predicting injuries, between Jackson and Bradbury, the odds are higher than not that at least one of them will miss at least a game in 2026.
This leaves an opening for someone like Newman to step in and play well. In addition to injuries, the Bears must start to plan for the future, and the second-year offensive lineman appears to be part of that contingency plan. Look for the team to get him more involved this season, whether as an extra offensive lineman or in other creative ways. Both Thuney and Jackson have two years remaining on their existing deals, but as we learned this offseason, things change fast on the offensive line, and Chicago must be ready. For that, enter Newman.
9. DL Shemar Turner
Speaking of 2025 draft picks, Year 2 for players like Turner becomes critical to carving out a role moving forward. Many viewed Turner as an awkward scheme fit from the start, and despite the coaching staff starting him at defensive tackle, he was only...
