Which Bears Are Top-100 Fantasy Players?

ESPN Senior Writer Matthew Berry, who contributes plenty to their Fantasy Football content, has released his list of top-100 Fantasy Football players in the PPR format. For those who aren’t familiar, PPR stands for Points-Per-Reception and it’s the default scoring option through ESPN Fantasy Football. Therefore, running backs who catch passes often out of the backfield are valued higher in this system than traditional downhill runners.

The list is noted “These will be updated throughout the offseason” so bear that in mind, but there are multiple Chicago Bears players on the list, and a few omissions which may surprise people. For those who want to compare the 2020 list of expected performers with the 2019 results, you can view the 2019 scoring leaders here.

On to the important Bears players:

Ranked Bears Players

24. Allen Robinson II

Robinson had a very productive 2019, leading the team in almost every statistical category for receivers. He was the only Bears player to crack 1000 yards receiving, finishing with 1147 yards to go along with 7 touchdowns, according to ESPN. He blew the competition away with his 154 targets, and if you watch film of Mitchell Trubisky you can tell Robinson is usually his first read. He may have been a Pro Bowl snub, but at least he gets national recognition as a top-25 fantasy option. Look for him to make sleeper lists for fantasy, as he’s early round talent you can snag in later rounds.

66. David Montgomery

It’s perhaps a bit surprising to see Montgomery jump this high up the list, after a frustrating rookie year in which the Bears always seemed to run the ball at the wrong time. Montgomery finished 2019 averaging 3.7 yards per carry, a statistic which would rank him 41st in the NFL. The expectation is that he will take a step forward, and the depth chart behind him and Tarik Cohen looks like camp bodies at this point. What Montgomery might do best is break tackles early in his runs, often refusing to go down at the line of scrimmage with a move that would make Sportscenter if it was in the open field. He’s an impressive running back who could take off this year under the right circumstances.

Notable Unranked Bears Players:

Tarik Cohen

Tarik Cohen finished 2019 as the #101 Fantasy scorer in the NFL in PPR format, just barely missing out on the top 100 scoring list. As such, it’s not an egregious omission to leave him off the list of top 2020 players. With 79 receptions in 2019, he’s had opportunities for big plays, but just 456 receiving yards for an average of 5.8 per catch indicates he was often a checkdown option for Trubisky.

Anthony Miller

After leading the team in touchdown receptions in 2018, Anthony Miller hit a slump he didn’t climb out of until it was too late last year. With 656 receiving yards (58th in the NFL) he simply wasn’t consistently targeted enough to justify a top 100 player going into 2020. While he’s young and talented, the Bears have to figure out what they have with him before he gets credit on national lists.

What do you think of these rankings? Should anybody have been included who didn’t make the list? Let us know in the comments!