As always, the Bears hope that Jay Cutler can finally find some consistency this season. At his best, it’s fair to say only a few quarterbacks can equal his level. He can make plays on almost any given situation and single-handedly carry a team on his shoulders.
Last season, we saw a glimpse of that, particularly in Chicago’s 37-13 win over the Rams in Week 9, where Cutler completed nearly 80 percent of his passes for 345 yards and three touchdowns.
Those are exactly the kinds of numbers the Bears want from Cutler in this Sunday’s season-opener against the Texans at NRG Stadium. Sure, Chicago’s only 5-5 in its last 10 road games overall (7-3 ATS), but a big game from Cutler should put them in position to steal one away from the reigning AFC South champs.
Cutler has a lot to work with thanks to a relatively deep receiving group that’s headlined by none other than Alshon Jeffery. He led the Bears last season with 807 receiving yards despite being held to just nine games. And besides him, there’s a highly-motivated Kevin White, who missed his entire rookie season with a fractured leg, looking to make up for lost time. He has all the necessary ingredients to eventually become a top-tier receiver in the league.
Meanwhile, there’s some optimism around the Bears’ revamped front seven, which now features inside linebackers in Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan. That should give Houston’s lead back, Lamar Miller, a tougher time in igniting the Texans’ stellar running game.
The expectations are high in Houston, especially for its new quarterback, Brock Osweiler. It would be unfair to make any definitive statements regarding the former Bronco, who has only amassed a total of 642 snaps in his NFL resume. But one thing seems certain is that the Texans’ other marquee acquisition in the offseason—RB Lamar Miller—is primed to make an immediate impact in the Texan’s season-opener against the visiting Bears.
Miller finally gives the Texans a more durable and proficient ball carrier to lead the backfield (so long Mr. Arian Foster!). He holds an impressive 4.6 yards-per-carry average along with 19 rushing touchdowns in his four seasons with the Dolphins. More importantly, Miller’s presence will ease the transition and take some of the pressure off Osweiler.
Making life even easier for the 25-year-old signal-caller is having DeAndre Hopkins, who is one of the best receivers in the league right now, as his go-to target. Hopkins was one of only four wide receivers that reached the 1,500-yard mark last season. He’s set to test a Chicago defense that ranked fourth overall in passing defense in 2015.
