The Bears and Caleb Williams brought hope back to Chicago fans this preseason

NFL teams can’t really ‘win the preseason,’ but if they could, the Bears would be champs

At long last the NFL preseason is officially over. We did it.

In some ways it feels like it all went by in a flash, but in others it seems like we are finally on the other side of the sludge like Andy Dufresne. Whatever the case, the most important fact is that the next NFL game we see will matter in full totality.

As the dust has settled on the preseason though, what were our biggest takeaways from it all? Who stood out? What do we think now that we didn’t before it all began?

That is exactly what we are here to discuss. We being us, Michael Peterson and RJ Ochoa.

Welcome to the latest edition of The Skinny Post.

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Top player from the preseason

RJ:

This is a time of year where optimism and hope reign supreme across every single NFL team and that is even more true when it comes to squads with brand new quarterbacks.

Last week here in the Skinny Post I noted a vote of confidence in Denver Broncos rookie Bo Nix. I’m here once again to champion his cause because even though the Broncos are trying way too hard to convince us that this was the best-case scenario all along... it seems like they have found themselves in a position of verifiable legitimacy.

I’m not going to sit here and say that I think Denver is headed to the playoffs or anything, but this is a team that has mostly been an abject failure for a decade.

We are much closer to the dawn here. Good for them and for Nix specifically.

Michael:

I’m going to give a shout to Vikings wide receiver Trishton Jackson for a strong preseason from start to finish. The 26-year-old is pushing for playing time behind Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison this year and putting up a score in every game while ending the month with the fourth-most receiving yards in the league and most touchdown grabs this preseason isn’t a bad argument for more snaps.

His biggest competition to being the team’s WR3 right now is fellow third-year player Jalen Nailor. Nailor had just three receptions in 2023 to Jackson’s two. As it stands, both are right there in the competition but as far as what we’ve seen on the field, Jackson seems to have the inside track after a big-time showing in August.

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Top moment from the preseason

RJ:

I’m going to cheat and go with something that happened as we were in the middle of doing this... CeeDee Lamb got paid by the Dallas Cowboys.

Did it take way longer than it had to? Absolutely. No question about it.

Is it unfortunate that Lamb missed all of training camp? I’d say so!

But it is over and now we can shift our attention to the team taking care of Dak Prescott so that I can have some semblance of peace and focus only on football once again.

Michael:

I think the moment that stands out to me the most is when the country got their first look at first overall pick Caleb Williams in the Bears’ second preseason game against the Bengals. Specifically, that big play where Williams scrambled to his left after doing a near-360 in the pocket before lofting a perfect pass to fellow first-rounder and rookie wideout Rome Odunze up the sideline. It was a 45-yard gain that could have easily went for a sack or an incompletion but Williams put it right in the breadbasket.

I mean, that moment was the encapsulation of everything the Bears have wanted and needed in a quarterback for so very long. The entire 2024 season flashed through the fanbase’s eyes that day. Each one of them probably saw the headlines of “Caleb Williams MVP!” and “Bears are Super Bowl Champions!” streak across the sky. I’m not going to be the one to tell them to relax, though. Let’s let them have their hope.

Also, this Odunze guy is going to be a dude in this league and I’m incredibly jealous that the Bears got him to grow alongside Williams for the foreseeable future.

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Top team from the preseason

Michael:

I think I have to stick with the Bears for this one. They’re one of only two teams that played four games this preseason, and they finished with an undefeated record while dominating their opponents in three of their matchups. After beating the Texans in the Hall of Fame Game by a score of 21-17, they went on to win the next three games by 27, 24, and 13 points, respectively.

Are the Bears going to be legitimately good in 2024? The preseason obviously means nothing in the grand scheme of things and I believe no eventual Super Bowl winner has ever gone undefeated in the preseason, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a great year that becomes something to build on for 2025 and beyond. They’ve got a strong set of offensive skill players around Williams and a couple of notable building blocks on defense, specifically cornerback Jaylen Johnson, who was extended earlier this offseason.

If Eberflus does the work and puts his players in the best position for success more often than not this year, I think they have a shot at a division crown. But the NFC North is a very competitive division and even with how good the Lions have been, I believe any of the four teams could ultimately come out on top this season.

RJ:

Is it weird if I go with the Atlanta Falcons? It kind of seems like Bijan Robinson is hiding in plain sight and I know that the Kirk Cousins stuff is fun to make fun of and all of that jazz, but how is Atlanta’s offense not going to be really good-to-maybe even great this year?

Part of my answer is based around the fact that the NFC South looks just as bad as ever. It is totally possible in my mind that Atlanta walks over an easy division and is back in the playoffs. Would this be the first playoff game of theirs in that building? I think so!

Let’s see it happen.