The Chicago Bears pulled one of the biggest upsets in recent memory by defeating the Green Bay Packers 17-13 on the road in a Thanksgiving thriller. No sane Bears fan picked Chicago to win. Jay Cutler and the Bears have had a track record of performing horribly whenever they were in Green Bay. The only person to pick the Bears to win was probably Mike Ditka, but he picks the Bears to win every week.
These Bears continue to fight week in and week out.
Excluding the one and a half games that Cutler did not play due to injury, the Bears have been competitive in every game. This team was supposed to be in rebuilding mode considering its lack of talent on both sides of the football, but the Bears have been winning with players the average football fan has never heard before.
For example, did you know of Chris Prosinski before the Packers game? Prosinski, who replaced an injured Antrel Rolle, forced a fumble against Eddie Lacy and the Bears recovered. Christian Jones, one of the Bears starting inside linebackers, has been an underrated contributor to a defense that limited to an Aaron Rodgers-lead offense to only 13 points. Tracy Porter, who intercepted Rodgers in the fourth quarter, is recreating a name for himself since his Super Bowl XLIV performance with the New Orleans Saints. Tight end Zach Miller has scored four touchdowns the last four games. None of these players were relevant last season, or even earlier this season.
The standoff between the Packers’ offense and the Bears’ defense at the end of the game was possibly a season-changing turn of events for the Bears as a team moving forward. Chicago is full of confidence after winning under the toughest conditions. The Bears could finish the season strong with a relatively weak schedule ahead.
Although Chicago is 5-6, the Bears’ record is not a good indicator of how good they really are. They have already matched last season’s win total with five games left to play. The Bears’ next two games are in Chicago against the lowly San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins, both of which are very winnable. Assuming the Bears can win these games, their record would be above .500 for the first time this season before playing a tough and important game against the Minnesota Vikings on the road.
There is a lot of bias in these favorable predictions for the Bears’ upcoming games, but within reason. Chicago has won three of its last four with games remaining against San Fran, Washington, Minnesota, Tampa Bay, and Detroit, all of whom are beatable.
Watch out for these Bears.