Page 49 - Darnell Wright News Today

The Chicago Bears have revamped their defense after finishing near the bottom of the league on that side of the ball last season. Coach Matt Eberflus believes those efforts were successful, but he needs to see his defensive starters playing together — or even practicing together — first. Injuries have prevented Chicago’s full first-team defense…

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles envisions more explosive plays from a revamped offense and a retooled defense creating turnovers more often. Considering the Bears finished with the worst record in the NFL last year, there seems to be nowhere to go but up. “I really believe this team is set up to elevate and really go to the next level, which we’re all excited for,” Poles said Wednesday.

EXPECTATIONS: The Bears have just about nowhere to go but up. How high they climb largely hinges on how big a step quarterback Justin Fields takes in his third year. Fields dazzled running the ball last season, just missing the single-season rushing record for a quarterback with 1,143 yards — 63 shy of Lamar Jackson’s 1,206 for Baltimore in his 2019 MVP season — and running for eight touchdowns.

The arrow is pointing in a positive direction when it comes to the Chicago Bears and their latest health update from Coach Matt Eberflus.

The Bears expect all but one starter to healthy enough to take on their rivals in Week 1, head coach Matt Eberflus said Tuesday.

The Bears have just five players among the top 200 salary-cap numbers in the NFL, and Poles needs them to play up to their contracts for the team to contend for a playoff spot.

At this point, you can see in Fields what you want to see.

The team will whittle its roster down by the Tuesday deadline.

College Gameday's Pat McAfee lists Tennessee football as his dark horse candidate to win the SEC this coming season.

The Los Angeles Rams wrapped up joint practices with the Denver Broncos on Thursday, and the biggest headline (on the Rams’ side) was receiver Cooper Kupp declaring that he’s “on track” for the season-opener in Seattle on Sept. 10. Kupp returned to practice this week after missing almost three weeks with a hamstring issue, and hasn’t lost a step with quarterback Matthew Stafford. More on that coming later in the Los Angeles Rams feed at The Athletic.Meanwhile, here are some notes and o...