Bears' D'Andre Swift explains how he will play a major role in helping Caleb Williams find early success in 2024

The Chicago Bears' offense will look entirely different under new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and will have plenty of mouths to feed with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams commanding the unit.During the offseason, the Bears' front office went out and added multiple talented playmakers to the roster to already mesh with what the team had during […]

Kole Noble Chicago Bears News Writer
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May 31, 2024; Lake Forest, IL, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) throws the ball during organized team activities at Halas Hall.
Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bears' offense will look entirely different under new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and will have plenty of mouths to feed with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams commanding the unit.

During the offseason, the Bears' front office went out and added multiple talented playmakers to the roster to already mesh with what the team had during last season.

This unit is equipped to attack in all areas of the game and is the perfect environment for a rookie quarterback to step into, however, one addition in particular is going to make Williams' life so much easier during the upcoming season.

Once the free agency period began, the Bears were quick to sign former Philadelphia Eagles' running back D'Andre Swift to a high dollar, three-year contract. The money and contract structured showed that the Bears' offense isn't planning to mess around and added the dynamic back the unit was desperately looking for.

Swift's impact within the Bears' new offensive scheme will help take the unit to an entirely new level while also taking the pressure off the shoulders of the team's rookie quarterback.

"I feel like if you got a good running game, that makes everything else work," Swift said on Friday following practice. Play action, receivers, everything kind of just trickles off one another. So, if we got a good running game, I feel like it makes the whole offense itself more balanced."

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Swift's role on the team goes beyond just being a factor on the ground coming off a career-high season rushing the ball in Philadelphia. During his time with the Detroit Lions, Swift proved that he can also be a legitimate weapon in the passing game as an additional player for Williams to throw to.

"He's a weapon out of the backfield, which is outstanding for our passing game," head coach Matt Eberflus explained. "It's going to create some mismatches for us and he can do a lot of things from the backfield. We can split him out wide and run the full route tree, so he's exciting to watch… 

"We really needed that guy that can really operate on third down and even on first and second down, be a weapon in the deep part of the field and the short part of the field, and being able to take it the distance. He's got a lot of gas."

Having a dynamic back like Swift to dump the ball down to as a third read will go a long way for Williams and the offense. It also helps that Swift has the ability to turn any opportunity with the ball into a house call.

During the last two weeks during the team's organized team activities, Swift was finally able to take the field with his new quarterback and begin developing their connection.

"You can tell it's natural to him," Swift said about Williams. "You can tell he's trying to get comfortable with the offense and everything to command the offense. When you stand in the huddle with a whole new set of faces, new group of guys, it takes time for somebody to get comfortable. He's done a great job so far taking it day by day."

The Bears' offense is littered with top talent from top to bottom between DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and Rome Odunze at wide receiver; Cole Kmet and Gerald Everett at tight end; and even Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson behind Swift in the backfield. This creates a problem for Waldron to scheme up, but a good problem to have.

"I feel like it's gonna be balanced," Swift explained. We got a lot of playmakers on the outside and I feel like it's a tremendous running back room. We've got a lot of stuff in this offense to get our playmakers the ball."

Everyone is eagerly waiting to see what this new offense in Chicago is actually going to look like and how these different players will be utilized inside of it. But, one thing is clear, Swift is going to be a major part of what Chicago does offensively in 2024.