Reasons Bears could be this year's surprise NFL team

By beating the Browns 21-20 on Saturday, the Bears put together a perfect preseason for the first time since 1994.

That team - led by second-year coach Dave Wannstedt - went on to claim an unlikely playoff berth, then upset the Vikings in the wild-card round.

Those Bears were an underwhelming bunch, with Steve Walsh and Erik Kramer at quarterback, Lewis Tillman as the main running back, and Jeff Graham leading a pedestrian group of wideouts with 68 catches for 944 yards and 4 TDs.

The defense held its own, with Trace Armstrong, Alonzo Spellman and Chris Zorich up front, and an above-average secondary consisting of Mark Carrier, Donnell Woodford and Shaun Gayle.

So can these Bears shock the world and duplicate their predecessors' feat?

Most would laugh at such a notion, but there have been some promising signs since training camp began a month ago. Of course, there are still plenty of concerns, so let's not start gulping the Kool-Aid just yet.

Here's a list of some good and bad signs in the wake of the Bears' victory over Cleveland:

Good: Justin Fields seems to have a better sense of how to extend a play - and he's seeing more of the field in the process. There were plenty of examples Saturday, but the best probably came with the Bears facing second-and-10 on their own 23 at the beginning of their fourth drive.

After feeling pressure, Fields bolted out of the pocket to buy more time and sprinted to his left. He had a couple of options, but made the A-plus decision to fire to Dante Pettis, who was wide open on the sideline. The play picked up 13 yards.

Bad: It's tough to find many issues with Fields, but the most obvious came on the Bears' third play when Fields should have hit Pettis on a simple out route. Fields looked at Pettis, but he failed to pull the trigger and ended up throwing the ball away a second later.

Good: David Montgomery, who saw his first action of the preseason, ran like a man possessed. He only managed 28 yards on 9 carries, but could have had 24 more if tight Ryan Griffin properly executed a block on the outside. Instead, Griffin was whistled for holding.

Bad: Poor run blocking on the first drive. The Bears' first play called for Montgomery to run off right tackle, but left guard Sam Mustipher was hammered 3 yards into the backfield, and Teven Jenkins completely missed his block on defensive end Alex Wright. Montgomery did well to only lose a yard.

The next play was a draw and actually started well, but Cole Kmet totally whiffed on linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. The play went for no gain.

Good: Dante Pettis steps up. The fourth-year receiver out of the University of Washington ran some crisp routes (none better than on his 12-yard TD) and also understood where to be on that second-and-10 scramble play that netted 13 yards. Pettis had just 10 catches for 87 yards for the Giants last season, but has taken advantage of this opportunity and figures to push for playing time.

Bad: Where is Equanimeous St. Brown? The 6-foot-5, 214-pound receiver, who followed offensive coordinator Luke Getsy from Green Bay, has been all but invisible in the preseason. One has to wonder what his role will be if Byron Pringle, Velus Jones Jr. and Pettis all prove capable.

Good: The defense. Head coach Matt Eberflus and coordinator Alan Robinson have made sure defenders are flying to the ball on every play. Once the season starts - and Roquan Smith and Robert Quinn are in the fold - this could be a unit that shocks quite a few around the league.

Piece of advice: Eberflus ought to take his time working rookie Velus Jones Jr. into the wide receiver rotation. The third-round pick has been out with an injury and needs time to mature into a dependable player.

Let him be your primary punt returner and give him limited snaps at wide receiver for at least the first three to four games. This will allow his confidence to grow and also surrounds Justin Fields with a more reliable group of weapons.

And make no mistake: That's extremely important for a second-year QB who hopes to develop into one of the best players in the NFL.