A quarterback competition has rolled into Chicago and it was forecast following an offensive regression that took the Bears from Super Bowl contender to the NFC North’s third-place squad.
Though Mitchell Trubisky has taken the grizzly’s share of the blame for the Bears’ offensive woes, it was very much the offense as a whole. All except wide receiver Allen Robinson, that is.
Productive in all weathers and dependable throughout the campaign, Robinson improved from his 2018 output while the rest of the Bears offense waned, reemerging as the talent who shined in the 2015 season with the Jaguars.
Nevermind the backdrop of a sputtering offense, Robinson, a Pro Bowl snub, nabbed a career-high 98 catches, which were seventh in the NFL. Along the way, he collected 1,147 yards receiving for his second 1,000-yard season and hauled in seven touchdown grabs. His previous 1,000-yard campaign was the aforementioned 2015, when he tallied 80 grabs for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns.
Striving to become the first back-to-back 1,000-yard receiver for the Bears since Alshon Jeffery (2013-14), Robinson will be looking to maintain his stellar play while simultaneously lifting the Chicago offense from its 2019 doldrums.
Bears Offense Matt Nagy Era
(Via NFL Research)
2018 2019
PPG 26.3 17.5
Total YPG 343.9 296.8
Pass YPG 222.8 205.7
Rush YPG 121.1 91.1
Big Plays 93 67
Despite Robinson’s productivity last year, the Bears offense scored nearly 10 points fewer per game and tallied nearly 50 yards less per contest. One season under coach Matt Nagy, the Bears were the No. 9 scoring offense. A season later, they were No. 29.
Contrary to those team numbers, Robinson’s individual stats were way up from 2018, though that was likely due to him playing in all 16 games as opposed to 13 the year prior, when he had 55 catches, 754 yards and four touchdowns.
If the Bears offense is to find its way back to its 2018 production, it won’t simply be riding on the arm of Trubisky or Nick Foles. It’s likely it’ll have a lot to do with Robinson keeping up his sensational ways.