The Chicago Bears offense has labored to start the 2022 season. They grinded out a victory in Week 1 against the San Francisco 49ers, but they looked lifeless for the most part against the Green Bay Packers in Week 2, and they ended up losing by a score of 27-10. It's clear early on that Chicago's offense has a lot of problems that will need to be solved moving forward this season.

While Justin Fields only attempted 11 passes against the Packers, it was good to see David Montgomery have a strong outing after struggling in Week 1. Whether Fields continues to struggle will probably have a large impact on Montgomery's success, but there's hope that things can turn around for the Bears soon.

Based on the opening two weeks of the season, there isn't a lot of room for sleeper fantasy football options on the Bears. But if they decide to become a run-heavy offense moving forward, this running back could end up becoming a very valuable fantasy option moving forward. Let's take a look at who this player is and why their value could go up starting as soon as Week 3.

Bears Week 3 fantasy football sleeper

RB Khalil Herbert

After Week 1, it seemed like Khalil Herbert was going to be in line for a much bigger workload with the Bears considering how he outproduced Montgomery despite having just nine carries compared to his 17. But in Week 2, Montgomery got the brunt of the work, even though Herbert picked up 38 yards on just four carries.

It's clear Herbert is an extremely effective running back, but his value is largely limited thanks to Montgomery for the time being. It certainly doesn't help Herbert's fantasy status that Montgomery had a strong outing in Week 2. But there's a chance that Herbert's role could begin to expand in the upcoming weeks.

For starters, Chicago's passing attack has been miserable this season under Fields' lead. He has failed to establish any sort of passing game in both of the Bears first two games of the season, and the offense has floundered as a result. It's unclear how Chicago is going to handle Fields' struggles to start the season.

One avenue would be to fully become a run-heavy team. Considering how the Bears only ran 41 plays on offense against the Packers, and 27 of them were runs, they may already be leaning that way. But when you take into account Fields' struggles and the threat of Montgomery and Herbert out of the backfield, it makes sense to believe the Bears will continue to lean heavily on their ground game.

Herbert has already proven to be effective on a per touch basis this season. He's only had 13 carries, but he's averaging 6.4 yards per carry on those touches, which is a very good number. Giving Herbert more action out of the backfield certainly wouldn't hurt Chicago moving forward, even with Montgomery's production.

Fields' inconsistency has made it a potential necessity for the Bears to begin taking the ball out of his hands more often, which would mean giving it to Montgomery and Herbert. Even if Montgomery retains his role as the top running back, there could be room for Herbert to make an impact for fantasy owners.

This scenario may not be completely realistic given Chicago's devotion to Fields, but Herbert may still continue to force the Bears to give him more carries if he keeps on picking up big gains on his runs. Again, playing behind Montgomery doesn't do him any favors, but there's an outside chance Herbert could overtake the role from Montgomery at some point later in the season.

For fantasy purposes, Herbert is a bit of a risky play right now, but having him on your bench at the very least would be a wise option. You can't really trust anyone on the Bears offense right now, but that doesn't mean that will be the case later on in the season. If Fields continues to struggle, Chicago could turn things over to their talented running backs, which is exactly what Herbert would need to show out for fantasy owners.

Even then, Herbert had a strong outing to open his season. Montgomery reclaimed the top spot against the Packers, but assuming Chicago can run more than 41 plays moving forward, Herbert's timeshare in the backfield should even out moving forward.

There are a lot of question marks surrounding the Bears offense right now, which impacts Herbert. And while that may be the case, it's clear his upside could make him a very strong option moving forward. Herbert may not be reliable now, but if you have an open spot on your bench, Herbert may be the perfect option to fill it.