The Chicago Bears will be looking to return to the win column when they visit the Cincinnati Bengals for Sunday's Week 9 action. The Bengals are a beatable team after dropping five of their last six games without starting quarterback Joe Burrow, and the Bears' outlook for the weekend is even better following the host team's latest injury report on Friday.
On Friday, NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that Bengals QB Joe Flacco is "questionable for Sunday" with a shoulder injury. Although the 40-year-old signal-caller hasn't been ruled out yet, the fact that Cincinnati also promoted former Green Bay Packers passer Sean Clifford from the practice squad suggests that Chicago's Week 9 opponent is preparing for the worst.
Regardless of who's under center for the Bengals this weekend, the Bears have to like their odds.
Bengals' QB News Is a Gift for Bears' Defense Heading into Sunday
If Flacco can't suit up on Sunday, the Bengals will be forced to start either Clifford or backup QB Jake Browning in his place. Fortunately, none of those names should strike much fear (if any at all) into the Bears' defense.
It's hard to imagine the Bengals wanting to risk Flacco's health, given his age. He's set to turn 41 years old in just a few months, and the last thing the ex-Super Bowl MVP likely wants is to worsen his shoulder injury.
The fact that he's also been Cincinnati's best quarterback (outside of Burrow) this season means the team likely wants to keep him healthy for as long as possible, too.
Browning is the obvious stand-in if Flacco can't play, given that he's already started three times this season. Having said that, the ex-Washington Huskie isn't exactly a big-time threat. Not only do the Bengals have a 0-3 record when Browning starts in 2025, but he also only completed 64.5% of passes for 757 yards, six touchdowns (to a whopping eight interceptions), and a 70.5 passer rating.
Considering how the Bears lead the NFL with 11 INTs to begin Week 9, it's safe to say Sunday's contest could feature plenty of turnovers.
And, of course, there isn't much of a reason to be scared of Clifford. The third-year QB has yet to start a regular-season NFL contest, and his preseason results haven't exactly been stellar so far. It's unlikely that he'll be anything special if given the chance.
All in all, it's shaping up to be a promising situation for the Bears' secondary. The unit is already on the upswing thanks to C.J. Gardner-Johnson's arrival, and Tyrique Stevenson (shoulder) is trending towards a return after missing Week 8. Assuming Gardner-Johnson is even more comfortable than he was in his debut and Stevenson is fully healed, the Bengals might not get much going through the air at all.
Hopefully, the Bears keep their foot on the gas pedal this weekend. While it can be easy to underestimate the Bengals due to their QB situation, upsets happen in the NFL all the time. That's why the Bears can't let this opportunity slip through their grasp.