NFL Power Ranking: Where are the 1-1 Chicago Bears?

This version of the Chicago Bears, with rookie quarterback Justin Fields set to see some real action, are a lot more exciting on a national level, but that likely won’t sway the Power Rankers after week 2.

It’s been a while since Chicago’s offense has anyone believing they can hang with the top teams in the NFL, and their defense will need to stack a few good games together before the analysts feel good about giving them their due. But let’s see what the experts think this week about the 1-1 Bears.

NFL.com moved the Bears up one spot to 25.

The Bears can thank their defense for delivering the first win of their season. Chicago forced four second-half turnovers against the Bengals, picking off Joe Burrow on three consecutive pass attempts in a 20-17 victory. Roquan Smith had his first career pick-six, while Eddie Jackson forced a fumble that led to a field goal. The Bears needed these splash plays to cover for an offense that lost Andy Dalton to a knee injury. Dalton dodged a major catastrophe, and it appears the veteran will remain the starter ahead of Justin Fields if he’s healthy enough to play. Bears fans might not like it, but Dalton looked like the better quarterback against the Bengals.

Here’s how Yahoo Sports has it this week.

23. Chicago Bears (1-1, LW: 26)

Justin Fields looked a beat late on most of his throws. But, he was a rookie coming off the bench cold. He should be a lot better in Week 3 with a full week of practice, if he gets the start.

ESPN has the Bears up 2 spots to 24th overall and they give Chicago’s surprise fantasy football player.

Fantasy surprise: WR Darnell Mooney

Let me preface this by saying that outside of David Montgomery, the Bears have very few viable fantasy options. However, the Bears are high on Mooney, who caught 61 passes for 631 yards as a rookie last year. Through two games, Mooney has been targeted 15 times. The second-year wideout has been Chicago’s most productive receiver, with 11 receptions for 92 yards. — Jeff Dickerson

CBS Sports is keeping the Bears at 24 this week .

With Andy Dalton hurting, it’s time for Justin Fields to start. He didn’t look good coming in for Dalton against Cincinnati, which has to be a concern.

Here’s how the USA Today has it.

23. Bears (26): As predicted, this team doesn’t have a good enough supporting cast to make rookie QB Justin Fields wildly successful at this point. You Chicagoans owe injured Andy Dalton an apology.

Sports Illustrated has the Bears at 25th overall after 2 games.

The Bears tried to create a deliberate plan for when the Justin Fields era would begin (even if they wouldn’t exactly share that plan with the rest of us), and then football happened, with Andy Dalton’s injury forcing Fields into an extended role against the Bengals and injecting even more chaos into the most scrutinized QB situation in the NFL. In the long run, I think it’ll be good to rip the Band-Aid off and get Fields out there gaining experience.

Here’s how the Sporting News has it.

22. Chicago Bears 1-1 (24)

The Bears got on the board with Andy Dalton getting more out of their offense and the defense starting to live up more to its reputation. They also learned there will be plenty of lumps with Justin Fields, even though he might help their offense in different ways and will make it better in time.

The Bears travel to play the Cleveland Browns for week three, and that game will tell us a lot about this this Bears team.

What are your thoughts on the power rankings this week?

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