How the Chicago Bears can make the playoffs in 2017

After entering the season thinking it was the final year of a rebuild, the Chicago Bears find themselves in a wide-open NFC North division. They are getting hot at the right time and will soon find themselves in the playoffs as the NFC North champions.

The Chicago Bears have had a very tough schedule to start the year, which makes it amazing that they are where they are now.

They started the season against the Atlanta Falcons, who are the defending NFC champions. They, then, had to go on the road to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In Week 3, they had to face a perennial AFC playoff team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, whom the Chicago Bears defeated at Soldier Field. In Week 4, they had to face the Green Bay Packers on a short week, at Lambeau Field.

Considering that Mike Glennon was the starting quarterback for those first four games, the Chicago Bears were lucky to go 1-3, during that first quarter of the season. Since Glennon was benched, Mitch Trubisky has led the Chicago Bears to a 2-1 record.

Sure, Trubisky lost his first start against the Minnesota Vikings, but that was against a very good defense in prime time. The past two games have been much better, considering there have been positive results in the win-loss column.

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The Chicago Bears beat the Baltimore Ravens 27-24, in Baltimore. For what it’s worth, the Ravens just beat the Miami Dolphins 40-0 on Thursday.

Last week, the Chicago Bears physically dominated the Carolina Panthers, who many experts had in the top 10 of their power rankings, by a score of 17-3.

Now, the Chicago Bears are 3-4. Considering Green Bay Packers’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers is out with a broken collarbone, the division is wide open. Let’s see exactly how the Chicago Bears will do the impossible and make the playoffs in 2017.

The offense will improve

Trubisky is only going to get better, as the season moves on. He is about to start his fourth NFL game and his 17th start since high school. Each week that goes by, the more he learns, which should make us Chicago Bears fans very excited.

In his first game as an NFL starter, Trubisky showed flashes against the Vikings but threw a bad interception to Harrison Smith at the end of the game. So, what did Trubisky do the next week against the Ravens? He threw the ball away when there were no open receivers. That right there is called growth, ladies and gentlemen.

Last week against the Panthers, Trubisky completed four of seven passes, while being sacked four times. The offensive line did not do him any favors, but some of the sacks were just plays where Trubisky needs to either throw it to the “hot” receiver or out-of-bounds.

The good news is that these are plays that are expected for a rookie quarterback. Rome was not built in a day. Now, do you know what is even better? Trubisky wants to improve. He shows accountability, and he is becoming a true leader at the quarterback position.

On another note, the Chicago Bears already have one of the best running backs tandems in football. Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen are an amazing thunder and lightning combination.

As the season progresses, I expect Cohen to be utilized as a receiver more frequently. Head coach John Fox is going to have to let offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains open it up, eventually. It could even be tomorrow against the New Orleans Saints.

The addition of wide receiver Dontrelle Inman is going to help the offense. Is he ever going to be one of the best receivers in football? No, that is unlikely, but he can get open. Also, his presence outside will allow Kendall Wright to see the field more, since, apparently, the Bears prefer him as a slot receiver.

We will see if Inman is active this Sunday. I do not see why he would not be, considering the Chicago Bears are not running a complex passing offense. They should give him a few specialized routes to run.

The defense will finish the season as a top-5 unit

Currently, the Chicago Bears’ defense ranks 7th, in terms of yards allowed (301.3), per NFL.com. I expect this number to go down, as the season progresses. My reasoning? The unit is taking the ball away.

They have scored defensive touchdowns, in two straight weeks. There was the Adrian Amos pick-six against the Ravens. Christian Jones also forced a fumble in that game. The following week against the Panthers, Eddie Jackson returned a fumble for a touchdown, as well as an interception for a touchdown. Also, middle linebacker Danny Trevathan intercepted a pass from Cam Newton.

Not to mention, the defense has not given up an offensive touchdown in two straight weeks. Going into the season, many viewed the front-seven as the defense’s strength, while the secondary had question marks. Through seven weeks of the season, the unit is playing complementary football. Now, the secondary is providing such good coverage that the defensive line is now getting coverage sacks.

Since 2012, the defense has struggled at creating turnovers. Now, they have created five takeaways in two games. It’s a contagious mindset that seems to have affected every player on the defense.

The Chicago Bears will look to carry this movement tomorrow in New Orleans. Drew Brees will give the defense an opportunity to intercept a pass. It will be up to the Bears’ players on defense to make the play.

The schedule gets softer

The Chicago Bears sit at a record of 3-4. A win over the New Orleans Saints tomorrow could propel the team to .500 (4-4). Considering the Chicago Bears started the season at 0-2, I would say that is impressive.

Obviously, the best-case scenario is that they beat the Saints, but even if they do not it is still not the end of the world. The second-half schedule is much softer, compared to the first-half.

I do not see why the Chicago Bears would lose to the Packers, who will be starting Brett Hundley at quarterback. Despite having a drastically worse roster, the Bears managed to beat the Lions at Soldier Field last year, and they almost beat them at Ford Field. I believe the Bears can beat them at least once, and I believe it will be at Soldier Field. So, make that a two-game winning streak, after the bye.

The game at Philadelphia is going to be tough. The Eagles are 6-1, and I can not see the Bears winning that game. The good news is that, after the Eagles game, the Bears play the 49ers and Bengals. I believe that the Bears will win both of those games to make their post-bye record 4-1.

Then, there is the second Detroit game. As I explained earlier, the Bears can beat the Lions, but just to be safe, I am going to peg this as a loss for the Bears. However, it is certainly a winnable game for the Bears.

The team will get back on track against the Cleveland Browns, who are currently 0-7. This will push the Bears post-bye record to 5-2.

In my mind, if the Bears beat the Saints, the team’s record will be 9-6. If the team loses to the Saints, the team’s record will be 8-7. I believe this sets up a win-and-in scenario either way against the Vikings, in Week 17.

The Vikings schedule starts to get tougher, especially with all of the road games. I can totally see their schedule going like this: win against the Browns, loss against the Washington Redskins, loss against the Los Angeles Rams, win against the Lions, loss against the Falcons, loss against the Panthers, win against the Bengals and, then, a win against the Packers.

This would make the Vikings’ record 9-6. Also, do not forget that the Vikings started the 2016 season with a 5-0 record, but finished 8-8.

So, as I stated earlier, the Week 17 match-up between the Vikings and Bears will decide the division. I am not a huge fan of the Lions, and I do not see them fighting for the division at the end of the season. Quarterback Matt Stafford is playing with a hurt leg, and their defense just gave up 52 (!) points to the Saints.

Next: Chicago Bears vs. Saints: Preview, game time and more

Call me crazy, but the Chicago Bears are winning the NFC North this season. This is a young, hungry football team that will be out for revenge against the Vikings. This is shaping up to be a fun season, and we should feel really good about the Chicago Bears, especially if they beat the Saints tomorrow.