Windy City Gridiron
The calendar is turning to November and it’s time for teams to really separate themselves.
Teams that are going to make a run at the playoffs have to start playing well. The teams that aren’t, are going to shift into “who do we fire?” and “how high will the draft pick be?” mode.
Thankfully, the Chicago Bears are a step above those teams for a change. Or at least they are now.
Without improvement, the Bears are going to be flirting with and sitting around .500 for the rest of the season. It’s better than where they’ve been, but it’s not where fans want to be.
The goal for the Bears should be to be solidly in the hunt for the rest of the season. At least push for a Wild Card spot, even if it ultimately doesn’t happen.
But the NFL is a thin line between playoffs and high draft picks.
The Bengals came into the year with true playoff aspirations. But a defense that’s made no strides and an injured quarterback have dashed those hopes.
Joe Flacco has turned it around a bit, but the Bengals are still a flawed team. A flawed, but dangerous team. They can win shootouts and put up points.
Let’s dive into the week’s opponent.
Cincinnati Bengals
SB Nation site: Cincy Jungle
Record: 3-5, second in AFC North
Last week: 39-38 loss to the New York Jets
Game day, time, TV: Sunday, noon CT, FOX
Spread: The Bears are 2.5-point favorites over the Bengals
Bears all-time record against: 6-6
Historical meetings: Week 10, 1992. The 3-5 Bengals came to Soldier Field to face the 4-5 Bears.
It was a back-and-forth game with a lot of swings. The Bears took a 21-7 halftime lead with rushing touchdowns from Darren Lewis and Mark Green, while Jim Harbaugh hit Anthony Morgan for a 46-yard strike, too.
In the third quarter, the Bengals struck twice with Eric Ball catching a 35-yard pass from Boomer Esiason and later hitting Craig Thompson for a 1-yard TD. Lewis added a 97-yard kickoff return for Chicago, too.
Carl Pickens caught a 23-yard touchdown from Boomer with 59 seconds left in the game to tie it at 28 and send it to overtime.
Harbaugh got the Bears to the Cincinnati 35-yard line, but Kevin Butler’s 52-yard attempt was no good.
In overtime, the Bears were forced to punt and Eisason drove the Bengals down the field to the Chicago 18, allowing Jim Breech to hit a 36-yard field goal to give the Bengals 31-28 win.
Last meeting: Back in week 2 of 2021, the Bears hosted the Bengals. Andy Dalton hit Allen Robinson in the first quarter to give Chicago a 7-0 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Roquan Smith had a 53-yard pick-six in the fourth to take the lead to 20-3. Joe Burrow finally got going in the fourth, hitting Ja’Marr Chase for a 42-yard touchdown and then Tee Higgins for a 7-yard TD. But the Bears held on for a 20-17...
