Windy City Gridiron
This is what we wanted, right? The Chicago Bears having something meaningful to play for in December?
Well, here it is, and it’s not for the faint of heart.
Dropping last week’s game to the Green Bay Packers was tough, not hardly fatal to the Bears’ playoff hopes. They’re currently in possession of the seventh and final NFC playoff spot, and they basically control their destiny as far as making the postseason or not.
But with the NFC as tight as it is, the playoffs might as well have started this week for Chicago. Because they can’t really afford to lose again.
Pro Football Focus’ latest analysis of high-stakes games for playoff seeding this week shows the Bears are among the teams with the most to gain (and lose) in Week 15. A win bumps them up to a 71% chance of making the playoffs. A loss drops them down to 42%—again, not fatal, but highly problematic given their closing schedule.
After that, the Bears will get the Packers team they just lost to—their biggest remaining obstacle to the NFC North title—at home, followed by the 9-4 San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions in the season finale, a game that might determine both teams’ playoff fate.
If the Bears lost to the Browns for some reason, what optimism would we have that they’d beat the Packers in Week 16? And if they dropped two in a row, their playoff chances might well drop off the map in a crowded conference. On the flip side, imagine how huge it would be for the Bears to win the NFC North and bag a top-three seed in the conference. Playoff games at Soldier Field. Breaking opposing teams in the freezing Chicago weather like we’re back in the ‘80s.
That’s what’s at stake now. From this week all the way through whatever end this season comes to.
Some might say it’s the blessing and the curse of having something meaningful to play for at this stage of the year. But if we’re being honest, how could any Bears fan look at this as anything other than a positive?
For once, this isn’t false hope, even if the Bears are still a flawed team in this first year under Ben Johnson. They’re legitimately good, and they’ve earned this 9-4 record they currently own. They’ve put themselves in a position to be mentioned among the NFL’s best teams.
This is the pressure you live for as a competitor: the chance to control your destiny, and to make it a reality
The Chicago Bears have put themselves in contention to win a division title and make a playoff run, probably a year earlier than expected. But once you’ve arrived, there’s no turning back.
Like it or not, it’s playoff time in Chicago, and losing is [almost] not an option.
