In John Fox's first season as the Chicago Bears head coach, the team had an up-and-down campaign. It lost the first three games of the season before winning four of its next six. From there on, inconsistency plagued the team from top to bottom, eventually leading to a 6-10 record. 

The one major takeaway from last season was the improved play of Jay Cutler, who put up the best statistical season of his career. This despite injuries to both Matt Forte and Alshon Jeffery at times during the season. Meanwhile, rookie top-10 pick Kevin White didn't suit up for a single snap. 

Despite the six-win season, there is a lot to be excited about in Chicago. It's coming off a solid free-agent run and has solid young pieces on both sides of the ball. 

In continuing with this 32 article series, here's a look at the top needs for the Chicago Bears as well as a seven-round mock draft we ran through the FanSpeak mock draft simulator. We manually picked for Chicago while the picks for all other 31 teams were selected by the simulator.

1. Outside Linebacker

On paper, Pernell McPhee and Lamarr Houston represent a solid pass-rushing outside linebacker duo on Chicago. McPhee recorded six sacks in his first season with the Bears. Not a bad showing, but not elite either. On the other hand, Houston put up eight sacks after missing half his initial season with the team back in 2014. Still, Vic Fangio's defense relies on elite-level play from this position. That's something the Bears simply don't have. If they are able to get one of the top EDGE players with the 11th pick, the Bears are going to have to consider it. 

2. Strong Safety

This could very well be Chicago's top need. The issue here is that it's not going to be able to address it with an immediate starter-caliber player in the draft. In reality, there isn't one available in this class. Instead, the team would be best suited rolling with Antrel Rolle (pun intended) for one more season while adding a mid-round project behind him. 

3. Cornerback

Kyle Fuller is a darn good cornerback. In fact, he's going to be a Pro Bowl player at some point soon. Outside of that, Chicago doesn't have much here. Tracy Porter remains a stopgap at best. Meanwhile, Bryce Callahan, Sherrick McManis and Alan Ball are not starter-caliber players in the NFL right now. If Chicago truly wants to boast a lock-down defense, it might be best served addressing this position in the first round. 

4. Guard

There really isn't anything here for the Bears to get excited about. Matt Slauson might be a replacement-level starter along the left side. That's really about it. Vladimir Ducasse has been a downright bust since being drafted into the NFL by the New York Jets back in 2010. If Chicago wants to be able to fend off inside pressure against Jay Cutler, it needs to find one upgrade at guard next to tackle turned guard Kyle Long. 

5. Offensive Tackle

It's absolutely absurd that the Bears gave Bobby Massie a three-year, $18 million contract. He may have started 14 games for the Arizona Cardinals last season. Heck, his addition enables the Bears to move Kyle Long inside. That's pretty big. It also creates another hole outside. Short of starting Charles Leno at right tackle or finding an upgrade in free agency, this is an area that must be addressed. Besides, Massie hasn't proven himself to be anywhere near an above-average tackle in the NFL.