Sports

The Chicago Bears’ “Zero to Hero” Season

Manny Fontanez and Michael Murphy • February 5, 2026

Introduction:

This is Ben Johnson. This season was his first as a NFL head coach and was formerly the offensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions. (Chicago Bears)

The Chicago Bears ended last season going 5-12, after drafting Caleb Williams with the first overall pick and expecting big things by bringing him into Chicago. Caleb showed many flashes of greatness but definitely didn’t meet the expectations set by his Heisman winner status. What the Bears did to try to flip around this record included firing head coach Matt Eberflus and hiring Ben Johnson to replace him. One more crucial part of the off season was hiring defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.

NFL Draft:

This image shows all the Bears’ draft picks. The most impactful players turned out to be Colston Loveland, Luther Burden, Ozzy Trapilo, and Kyle Monangai as they were all starting at some point during the season. (Yahoo Sports)

The talk going into the draft was a lot for fans to take in as the Bears had a high pick along with some more a little later in the draft. With the first round pick the Bears selected Colston Loveland over Tyler Warren which caused a lot of negative talk as Warren was the projected pick and people doubted if Loveland was better than Warren. Later on Loveland proved himself and had an amazing year which definitely changed everyone’s mind. Four more important picks the Bears had was offensive tackle Ozzie Trapilo, wide receiver Luther Burden III, defensive tackle Shemar Turner, and late in the draft a sneaky choice with running back Kyle Monangai.

Training Camp:

This is Caleb Williams, the Chicago Bears second year quarterback. He was one of the highest prospects in his draft class. (Joe Glorioso)

Going into off-season training camp all the scouts and reporters were looking at one thing, Caleb Williams. Everybody knew what was at stake for Caleb as there is a huge level of expectations that he is supposed to reach as a Heisman winner and first overall pick in the NFL draft. As camp started Caleb was having trouble connecting with his receivers and throwing a lot of interceptions. This seemed to trouble a lot of the reporters and fans and caused a lot of bad conversations about Caleb and if he can succeed in the NFL. On the other hand, the Bears defense was looking like they were going to be a real challenge for opponents while coached by Dennis Allen.

The First half of the season:

The Bears started the first two weeks of the regular season against divisional opponents and lost both of them going 0-2. After this, everyone started doubting the connection between Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams, and if they made the right decision drafting Caleb over other quarterbacks. Heading into week 3 Chicago made a huge turn when they caused an upset win at home against the Dallas Cowboys, winning 31-14 with Caleb proving his skill and potential in the NFL. After this win the Bears went on to win 4 out of the next 5 games with a loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Next the Bears played the Cincinnati Bengals and after this game everyone knew that the Bears offense was a real threat. This game was even in talks for game of the year because of the crazy amount of lead changes and such high scoring.

This is Bears rookie Luther Burden III, scoring his first NFL touchdown against the Cowboys. He scored on a 65 yard receiving touchdown. (Marquee Sports)

Second Half of the season:

Going into the second half of the season the Bears had a way tougher schedule than they did in the first half of the season. Out of the next 9 games they had to play 4 division games, the former Superbowl champions, and 2 playoff contenders. Caleb and his team started off the second half of the season strong, winning four games in a row. Next up Caleb had to face the former Superbowl winners, the Philadelphia Eagles, in Philadelphia on Black Friday. Caleb went out and beat the eagles with the help of his running backs and this 24-15 win helped show how good the Bears can be. The Chicago Bears went on to clinch playoffs with the #2 seed in the NFC and winning the NFC North.

In this image the Bears are celebrating an interception against the Eagles. Kevin Byard III number 31 is a Chicago Bears safety that led the NFL in interceptions with 7. (Bill Streicher)

The NFL’s Biggest Rivalry:

As you may know, the rivalry between the Bears and Packers is the longest lasting rivalry in the NFL and it means a lot to both fan bases. One of the biggest accomplishments you can have as a Chicago Bears quarterback is to beat the Packers, so that’s what Caleb did. Caleb Williams lost the first game against the Packers and it brought a bad reputation. The Bears and Packers would go on to play 2 more times, and once in the playoffs. Caleb Williams sent the second game to overtime and threw one of the greatest throws Chicago has ever seen to win the game. The next time the Bears faced the Packers was in the first round of playoffs and a lot was riding on this game. Caleb Williams ended up having the greatest comeback in Bears history while also bringing the City their first playoff win since 2010.

This is WR DJ Moore scoring the game winning TD against the packers this year in week 16. DJ is the highest paid Bears player on the team at this moment. (Chicago Tribune)

The Future

Although the Bears lost to the Los Angeles Rams in the second round of playoffs, a lot of people believe that the Bears have found their franchise quarterback in Caleb Williams. After showing all the things that he could do, there seems to be a lot of talent and potential from Caleb Williams. After his second season he showed the Bears a lot of success and the city truly believes in his ability to win and the ability of Ben Johnson to help Caleb become a star player in the NFL.

This image shows Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams celebrating in the locker room after a huge win. Ben and Caleb will be a dynamic duo Chicago won’t forget. (CHGO Sports)

2025-2026 Issue #3

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About the Contributors

Manny Fontanez, Staff Reporter

Hi! I am Manny Fontanez. I am a sophomore at Elmwood Park High School and this is my first year writing for The Tiger. I am currently on the golf team and I play volleyball during the spring. I also participate in Operation Snowball and Student Council. I really enjoy hanging out with my friends, and I sometimes play video games in my free time. I want to go to a good college, hopefully somewhere close to home so I can visit often. I don’t know exactly what I want to do for a living, but I do know that I want to be successful and get accepted into a good college.

Michael Murphy, Staff Reporter

Hi! My name is Michael Murphy. I am a sophomore at Elwmood Park High School and am currently on the Golf Team and Baseball Team here at Elmwood Park. I also am involved in many clubs, including Snowball, Varsity Club, TLC, C/O 2028, and Student Council. I hope to go to college at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. I currently do not know exactly what I would like to do in the future, but I know that I want to enjoy what I do. I will work hard to try to get into college by keeping my grades up and staying involved in extracurricular activities.