A revamped Caleb Williams and a high-energy offense have the Windy City buzzing. Discover how roster transformations and elite conditioning could finally end the franchise's title drought.
The Chicago Bears last went to the Super Bowl during the 2006 season.
They faced Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts at Dolphin Stadium, now known as Hard Rock Stadium, the home of the Miami Dolphins.
The Bears got off to a great start after the Colts made the decision to kick the ball off to Devin Hester. Hester returned it 92 yards for a touchdown to give the Bears a 7-0 lead.
Sadly, the Bears lost 29-17.
Before that, the Bears' last Super Bowl appearance was in 1985. They beat the New England Patriots 46-10 with just four offensive touchdowns.
It's been nearly 20 years since the Bears were last in the Super Bowl, but Colin Cowherd thinks the franchise is very close to competing for one.
Shortly after last season's Super Bowl concluded, the odds for this year's started coming out. The Bears opened with +2500 odds for Super Bowl 61. The favorites were the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams at +950.
On the latest episode of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd," Cowherd shared why he believes the Bears are finally ready to get back to the Super Bowl.
For one, the offense looked smooth when he observed practice. He didn't see a single dropped pass.
"I got to tell you, my observations, that offense, I didn't see a dropped pass," Cowherd said. "That's a young, highly quick, and energized offense. It's almost got a college feel to it. They were celebrating. They were having a good time. The offense controlled the defense."
His next two points revolved around Caleb Williams. He noted that Williams looks much slimmer. Cowherd recalled one instance where Williams ran down the left sideline and said he looked like a wide receiver.
"Second thing, Caleb Williams has lost, he told me, 13 pounds," Cowherd said. "I'm telling you right now, he was the fastest quarterback in the league last year. His top speed was 21 miles per hour. He took off along the left side. A play broke down. He looked like a wide receiver. Now, he's not as bulky. He's not as strong. Will that hurt escapability, you know, when guys bounce off him? Maybe. But in terms of weight loss, he did it for a reason. To be more elusive."
If you've watched Williams closely over the last two seasons, you may have noticed that his completion percentage took a hit in 2025. He had a completion percentage of 62.5% as a rookie and then finished with 58.1% last season.
Williams has incredible talent, but even Bears fans will tell you there were times last year when he was a tad reckless.
Cowherd didn't notice any of that at practice and was impressed by how much more accurate the quarterback looked.
"And the third thing is he's much more accurate," Cowherd said. "I just talked to Ben Johnson after practice. It's just easier. It's tighter. Listen, he was a huge talent, but he was in college and as a rookie and even a little bit last year, a little loose, sometimes a little loose, a little inconsistent. It's not what I saw yesterday."
The Bears had a lot to clean up from the Matt Eberflus era. Now, it's time for Johnson to really take the reins.
Can this Bears team make the Super Bowl? Cowherd is a Bears believer.
