The Chicago Bears finally ended their losing streak, and in the process moved up in this week’s NFL Power Rankings.
The Chicago Bears ended their three-game losing streak on Sunday by beating their former coach Lovie Smith and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The win was the Bears second in six games.
The Chicago Bears used a three-headed running attack to keep the Bucs’ offense on the bench. Matt Forte, Jeremy Langford and Ka’Deem Carey combined for 174 yards rushing. While Forte and Langford did most of the heavy load, Carey scored two one-yard touchdowns, one on the ground and another through the air.
The Chicago Bears showed some character in not mailing it in and tanking for a better draft pick. They played hard, as if there was something to play for, and there was — pride.
Pernell McPhee credited Willie Young with firing the team up and getting them to play hard on Saturday night.
"I think it all goes back to Willie Young giving that speech last night, and if you know Willie Young, he’s got character. It was a serious speech about us coming together and having each other’s back no matter what. We just all played ball, had fun, high-fiving, jumping around. It was a funny reality check. It was funny but it was a reality check. Having your brother’s back."
The Chicago Bears now stand at 6-9. Though the record is not good, they are officially better than last season’s team. They still have a ways to go before becoming contenders, but they are on the right road. This offseason could be one of the franchise’s biggest one in recent history.
With the win, the Chicago Bears also move up in this week’s NFL Power Rankings.
There were a few teams that took big steps by winning big games, while others hurt their playoff hopes by losing winnable games.
Let’s take a look at how this week’s rankings look: