Bears In Mind: The Most Promising Offensive Players Under 25

By Jerrad Wyche

The Chicago Bears are heading into the 2022 NFL season following a year with plenty of promise on the offensive side of the ball. Despite the unit landing in the bottom third of the league when it comes to almost every prominent offensive statistical measurement, the rookie class, and emerging talent is filled with plenty of potential. From the offensive line to the skill positions, the Bears have plenty to be excited about with a core of players falling under the age of 25.

Justin Fields

Coming off of an up-and-down rookie season with the Chicago Bears, Justin Fields will enter his second season under center at the age of 23. His first season was full of a lot of promise but delivered the numerous rookie quarterback mistakes expected at the NFL level.

In a putrid offensive scheme, Fields showed glimpses of elite quarterback play and often felt like the best athlete on the field. With a new offensive coordinator building the offense to Fields' strengths, it's clear that the Bears know they'll only go as far as he can take them.

Cole Kmet

Cole Kmet has been the target of heavy criticism as the fanbase believes he has the skills and talent to rival some of the NFL's best tight ends such as Darren Waller of the Las Vegas Raiders or Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs.

The truth of the matter is that Kmet will be 23 by the time the 2022 NFL season starts. Twitter user Swiftizm did a great job of providing context to Kmet's development in comparison to other great tight ends in the league, seen here. He has plenty of runway in front of him, and the fact that he already has two years of experience this early means he can only grow from here.

Darnell Mooney

After a year of building a strong rapport with rookie quarterback Justin Fields, wide receiver Darnell Mooney is looking to build on a strong 2021 performance. He finished the year with 81 catches for 1,055 yards, finishing with five total touchdowns. With the Chicago Bears offense ranking in the bottom half in almost every category it's impressive that he was able to haul in such solid numbers.

He's the only pass catcher of note under contract for the team heading into next season and will likely be paired up with a rookie coming out of the 2022 NFL Draft in April. Look for Mooney to take another step towards being one of the best 5th round draft steals in NFL history.

Teven Jenkins & Larry Borom

The pair of rookie offensive linemen had their ups and downs in 2021, but both showed plenty of promise. Larry Borom got most of his starts and experience at the right tackle position but also dabbled on the left side a handful of times. He was proficient in both pass and run-blocking sets, rarely struggling.

With Teven Jenkins, he battled back from a nasty back injury that required surgery but settled in at the starting left tackle spot following an injury to the veteran, Jason Peters. It's unclear where the two will lineup in 2022, but their talent and performance suggest they'll both be starting Week 1 next season.