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The Chicago Bears are entering the 2018 offseason looking a lot like the Rams did going into the 2017 offseason.

They're coming off a bad year in which a promising rookie quarterback struggled. They have a new head coach who was essentially brought in to guide said QB. And they have a decent supporting cast surrounding the signal-caller, including a defense that possesses a high-potential young top-10 pick.

The quarterback, of course, is Mitchell Trubisky, who showed more promise as a rookie than L.A.'s Jared Goff in 2016. The No. 2 overall pick in 2017 had four wins, a 59.4 completion percentage and a 7-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 12 starts, while Goff had zero wins, a 54.6 completion percentage and a 5-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio in seven starts.

The new coach is Matt Nagy, who surpassed all expectations in his first year as the Kansas City Chiefs' offensive coordinator by helping quarterback Alex Smith post the league's highest passer rating. Like Sean McVay, Nagy is a young coach who learned from the best. But he has a little more NFL experience than McVay, who is the youngest head coach in league history.

That potential centerpiece defender is 2016 first-round pick Leonard Floyd, who might not be as accomplished as L.A. defensive tackle Aaron Donald and is coming off a major knee injury, but the Bears still ranked in the top 10 in terms of points allowed per game in 2017. That's something the Rams haven't accomplished in either of the last two seasons.

None of this means the Bears will do what the Rams did in 2017, but they're the most obvious candidates to end an extended playoff drought (they last made the playoffs in 2010).

Unlike the 2017 Rams, the 2018 Bears have a top-10 pick in the draft. They will also have money to spend and a few high-priority unrestricted free agents to look after. And let's not forget that Trubisky—already well-supported by strong young backs Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen—should benefit from the return of key offensive starters Cameron Meredith and Kyle Long.

It all makes Chicago an intriguing worst-to-first candidate, even in the competitive NFC North.