Windy City Gridiron
Hello, Chicago Bears fans! I’m here with a Good, Better, Best review of the 2025 season of the Chicago Bears. What was good…what got better…and what was the best at the end of the season? In many ways, this Chicago Bears team exceeded expectations. Let’s document what Matt Nagy might have called the “Whys” of the Bears’ success in the 2025 season.
Montez Sweat
In 2024, many questioned whether Montez Sweat could earn the contract that Ryan Poles awarded him. He finished the season with only 5.5 sacks. Additionally, he only had 12 solo tackles and 14 assists. This is not the profile of a DE1 in the NFL. In 2024, Sweat doubled all of his 2024 stats – he posted 31 solo tackles, 17 assists, and 10 sacks on the season. The Bears’ overall pass rush remains a question mark, but in 2025, Sweat put up the numbers you would hope for a number one defensive end on your d-line with 53 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, 17 QB hits, 6 passes defended, 3 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery.
Kevin Byard
Kevin Byard has long been recognized as an elite safety, but many thought perhaps his days of elite takeways were in the past. Byard had other thoughts for the 2025 season. While Byard was not as prolific in the tackling department in 2025, he more than made up for it with interceptions. Byard led the league with seven interceptions this season, more than making up for a drop off in tackles and passes defended.
Ben’s Game Management
After having experienced the utter nadir of game management featured by Matt Eberflus, it was a welcome sight to witness the Ben Johnson approach to managing games. He didn’t always make the right call, but his strategic approach to fourth quarter management led to the Bears winning a league-leading comebacks in the last quarter of the game.
Caleb Williams Sack Rate
In 2024 the overwhelming thesis about Caleb was that he was overrated as the first overall pick. The primary stat oriented against him was his sack rate on the season. Caleb’s sack rate in 2024 was 10.8%. Caleb took a league leading 68 sacks in 2024, leading many analysts to argue he was a bust. Others, on the other hand, argued sack rate was something that could be improved – both by the QB and by the offensive line in front of him. In 2025, Caleb cut that sack rate by more than 50% – reducing his sack rate to 4.05%. Was this a function of Caleb getting the ball out more quickly? No – his time to throw in 2024 was 3.03 while his time to throw in 2025 was 3.20. What changed was Caleb’s protection up front and his elite escapability.
The Bears Rushing Attack
The Bears in 2024, despite having been productive in the run game in previous seasons, had a significant drop off. They were only 25th in total...
