The Bears' 2019 season is inching closer to its halfway point with six games already in the books. With that much football already in the rear-view mirror, the player narratives for this season are beginning to crystallize. Sure, second-half breakout performances are always possible, but it's worth taking a look at some of this team's top performers as they enter a critical 10-game stretch in the Bears' efforts to make the playoffs for the second-straight year.
Analytics is a great tool to understand how well (or poorly) players are doing on the field, every snap. Nothing will replace watching the game yourself and forming your own opinion, but it can be very helpful and provide more depth in your analysis by supplementing your eyes with a team of analysts like the guys and gals at Pro Football Focus.
Here are the Bears' best and worst PFF grades on both sides of the ball:
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Offense
Best: WR Allen Robinson (80.4)
Worst: QB Mitchell Trubisky (45.7)
Notes: It's no surprise that Robinson has the Bears' top grade on offense. An argument can be made that he's been the best player, week after week, on this entire team. And that includes Khalil Mack. Robinson's return to alpha status is a great development for an offense that's otherwise been a complete bust in 2019. GM Ryan Pace can continue building around A-Rob as Chicago's centerpiece skill player.
NFL
On the other side of the aisle is Trubisky, whose grade is also spot-on with his performance in 2019. To be fair, Kyle Long is actually the team's lowest-graded player on offense, but since he's on injured reserve, I kept this to the players who will be on the field over the final 10 games.
Trubisky's struggles have become a lightning rod for criticism this season and the rumblings about his inability to lead an NFL offense are getting louder by the snap. It's not inconceivable to think we could be in the final 10 games of the Trubisky era if he doesn't turn things around. Quickly.
Defense
Best: OLB Khalil Mack (90.6)
Worst: ILB Roquan Smith (48.0)
Notes: Mack is the Bears' highest-graded player overall, per PFF, which was an obvious result after his first four games of the year. The last two weeks have been a different story, however. Mack hasn't generated the kind of pressure or impact plays that he's become known for in Chicago and the team is struggling mightily as a result.
On the flipside is Smith, who's been the Bears' biggest disappointment on defense. Aside from Trubisky, he's been the team's biggest disappointment, period. Whether he's still battling whatever the off-the-field issues were that kept him out of Week 4's game against the Vikings is anyone's guess, but his play on the field has fallen way short of expectations in 2019.