Fresh off of an unlikely playoff berth made on the shoulders of a great defense and rushing attack, the Chicago Bears head into the 2021 NFL season with high hopes and new quarterback play on their quest for championship glory. With mediocre QB play having hindered them from deep playoff runs in the past couple decades, it feels as if this year might finally be the start of a new, special era in Chicago.

The Bears took rookie Justin Fields with the 11th overall pick in this year's draft, and the Ohio State product brings an electricity to his game that the Bears, nor all of the NFC North for that matter, have seen enter the league since Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers. Fields, if as good as advertised, will be a much-needed breath of excitement for Chicago. Though the Bears have had several solid teams over the last decade, they've consistently had to play second fiddle to the Packers, and haven't made it past the Wild Card round since 2010.

Now, with an exciting young talent at quarterback, an ascending wide receiver core, versatile running backs, and amazing depth on defense, Chicago could finally make the leap from decent to contender in 2021. Can Matt Nagy lead this talented group to the Super Bowl in 2021? Here are 4 bold predictions for the Bears in the 2021 campaign.

4. Darnell Mooney has a breakout season

As Allen Robinson has excelled year after year without a truly reliable running mate at quarterback, he also hasn't had a legitimate sidekick at wide receiver since back in 2015 when he played with Allen Hurns in Jacksonville. This year, Darnell Mooney has the chance to be that guy. In 16 games last season (only 9 starts), Mooney posted a healthy 61 receptions on 98 targets for 631 yards and 4 touchdowns. That would have been even better had he not suffered a whopping 23% of his targets being thrown off target (14th highest in NFL).

Drafted in the 5th round in 2020, Mooney is a speedster with the polish to be an efficient route runner at all three levels of the field. He's also a capable red zone threat, and the only thing he appeared to lack was size and strength in order to become an elite No. 2 threat. With a full offseason to improve in that arena, and what should be much better QB play, he's set to break out in a big way in 2021.

Prediction: 110 targets, 75 receptions, 900 yards, 8 TDs

3. Bears lead the NFL in sacks

Any defensive front with former DPOY Khalil Mack is going to have a decent showing in the sacks department. Throw in Eddie Goldman, Roquan Smith, Robert Quinn, and Akiem Hicks, and that group is going to pop off the stat sheet.

The Bears finished only 17th in the sacks department in 2020, according to Pro Football Reference, but injuries are in large part to blame for their performance. At their peak in health, the Bears are certainly closer to the group that finished with 50 sacks in 2018, only two off the NFL lead. Now that Mack and Co. have an offense that should get them some leads and inspire more effort, a motivated front 7 will be able to put 50+ sacks once again.

2. Justin Fields takes over Week 4, dominates

The Bears open the season up with a difficult three game stretch – Rams, Bengals, Browns. The Bengals obviously aren’t a huge challenge, but it makes sense that Matt Nagy and Co. wouldn’t want to throw Fields into the fire against the league’s reining No. 1 defense and a fearsome Cleveland defense that has two of the best pass rushers in the league (Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney).

But, a divisional square-off with the lowly Lions, followed by the middling Raiders should make for an excellent spot for Justin Fields to make his pro debut. As long as Dalton loses one or two out of those three games, which should happen on paper, it will be impossible for Nagy to resist putting in Fields. With 4.44 speed, insane accuracy, and a seasoned pedigree of big game performances, Fields will step in and make a big impact right away.

Prediction: 3,800 passing yards, 25 passing TDs, 9 interceptions, 650 rushing yards, 7 rushing TDs

1. Bears win a playoff game

Putting the pressure of making a playoff run, or even winning a playoff game, for that matter, is a lot to ask of a young QB. Just ask Lamar Jackson. However, given that the Bears were able to snag a Wild Card spot with Nick Foles and Mitch Trubisky at the helm in 2020, Justin Fields' dynamic game can propel the Bears to be an elite team.

Fields has shown in his college career the heart of a true leader – one who will even play his best through glaring injury in the spirit of winning. That combination of talent and intangibles is rare, and we'll see the beginnings of his Justin Fields' vast potential this year as he leads Chicago to an upset victory in the Wild Card round.