It may not seem like it but these Chicago Bears are right about where they should be and there is tangible proof to back that statement up.

Prior to the season, there was one team that the Bears were constantly compared to and that was Sean McVay’s 2017 Los Angeles Rams. There were many reasons for this comparison: the young first-year head coach who made waves around the league as an offensive coordinator, the old wily defensive coordinator who could keep the games close, but most importantly the young high-profile quarterbacks both of whom struggled in archaic offenses and were tabbed as busts far too early in their careers.







Well, five games in and those comparisons might be more accurate than we thought even though it may not seem like it right now.

Through five games the 2018 Bears have won three games and lost two.

Through five games the 2017 Rams won three games and lost two.

For both teams, one of those games included a dominating offensive and defensive performance resulting in blowout wins, a loss against a mediocre team, which was definitely winnable, and a loss against a division rival in which the offenses struggled to put it nicely.

But believe it or not the Bears’ offense is only slightly off from the 2017 Rams’ offensive pace through five games. After gaining 467 yards of offense against Miami, the Bears are averaging 366 yards of offense while the Rams were averaging 382 yards per game.

On defense, the number is looking worse after Sunday, but the Bears have still only allowed a respectable 344 yards per game even after giving up an atrocious 541 yards. The Rams were giving up just under 343 yards per game.

Now, to the important question: How do the two highest quarterbacks selected in their respective drafts compare? Well as it turns out that they are not too far off from each other.

Goff’s team averaged 30.4 points per game over this stretch, while Trubisky’s team is averaging 27.8 (Both teams also had the benefit of two defensive touchdowns through five games).

Goff was more consistent over his first four games before a clunker in his fifth game brought some stats down, while Trubisky started off slow before throwing nine touchdowns and only one interception over his last two games.

Overall the body of work for the two second-year quarterbacks in their first year being in actual NFL offenses are remarkably comparable.

After a mediocre start to the season and some disappointing losses, the Rams rebounded and won eight of 11 games including a 3-2 record against 2017 playoff teams.

The Bears should be in a similar spot as the year goes on. With home games against the Patriots, Vikings, Rams and Packers and an away game against the Vikings, I count five games against potential or probable playoff teams.

If the Bears can win three of those five games while taking care of business against teams who do not figure to be in the playoff race, they will be in great shape just as the 2017 Rams were with a home playoff game against the Falcons.

So, no the season is not over after a tough loss at the hands of the Dolphins, but this does mean that the Bears need to continue to improve on offense while proving that Sunday was an anomaly for the defense.

Every year playoff teams lose games they have no business losing. Last year, John Fox’s 5-11 Bears beat the Steelers and Panthers while taking the Vikings and Falcons to the brink. The key is to rebound and win the games you are supposed to while maybe surprising a team or two.

The ingredients are in place for a fun season and quite possibly a playoff berth for the first time since 2010.

If the Bears can prove Sunday was an aberration, perhaps with an upset of the Patriots, then the expectations should remain sky-high for a talented team with the right coaching staff to get the job done.