Chicago Bears: Huge win keeps playoff chances alive

The Chicago Bears earned a huge victory to keep their playoff hopes alive.

The Chicago Bears have had one of the craziest seasons of all time. It has been a roller coaster of a season that has three different parts. The first part of the season was glorious as they had a 5-1 start to the season. After that, they lost six in a row to come to a record of 5-7. Since that mess, they have won three straight and have a chance to be in the playoffs as the seventh seed in the NFC.

Their win over the Jacksonville Jaguars put them at 8-7 with the Green Bay Packers looming in Week 17. The Jaguars went into a game with a chance to keep pace with the New York Jets for the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Well, the Jets won (to their fanbase’s dismay) and the loss has clinched the top spot in the Draft for the Jaguars. They are going to be lucky enough to have Trevor Lawrence come to their organization and try and save them.

The Bears received some help earlier in the week when the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Arizona Cardinals who went into the week as the team holding the last Wild Card spot in the NFC. Well, the Bears win and the Cardinals loss is the reason they are in this lucky spot.

Of course, in typical Bears fashion, they didn’t do it the easy way. They had to make us think bad thoughts early in the first half. They didn’t look like a team that was significantly better than the Jaguars even though we know they are. It was only a 13-10 halftime lead for the Bears which was pretty concerning. The Bears have struggled in most third quarters this season so seeing them come out and outscore them 21-0 in the third was very nice. They ended up winning by a final score of 41-17 so they dominated a team that they needed to dominate, despite a slow start.

We don’t know as of right now what Green Bay’s intentions will be but they certainly would love to try and keep the Bears out. Don’t be surprised if we see their best against the Bears. If the Bears run the ball and Mitchell Trubisky can limit his mistakes, they should be able to stay in the game. If they hand on and win, they will clinch a spot in the 2020-21 playoffs.

The Bears also can get some help next week as well. If the Los Angeles Rams defeat the Arizona Cardinals next week, the Bears will clinch as well. Nobody should want to see the Bears win that way but it is something nice to have in their back pocket. Hopefully, they are able to take care of their own business and get into the playoffs. This win over the Jaguars was expected but it was also very much needed. Now, some meaningful Week 17 football is going to be very important.