The Chicago Bears entered their bye week this weekend feeling good. The team is coming off of back-to-back victories in which they showed they can win by any means necessary. Given how competitive the NFC North is, those wins were of the highest importance.
That said, Week 5's results did not benefit the Bears at all. Although the Green Bay Packers were also on bye, the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions weren't. Both the Lions and Vikings won their games. As a result, Chicago unfortunately was unable to gain any ground in the division during the bye week,
Chicago Bears Gain Zero Ground in the NFC North During Bye week
Let's start with the team that Sunday of Week 5 in the NFL kicked off with the Vikings. Minnesota played its second consecutive overseas game against the Cleveland Browns. Despite the Vikings trailing for most of the second half, they yet again made a comeback in the fourth quarter to win.
Minnesota pulled the same feat off in Week 1 against the Bears. Therefore, even though that loss was unacceptable, at least Chicago hasn't been the only team to suffer a Viking comeback this season. On the flip side of that, a Vikings loss might have made the Bears' Week 1 defeat look even worse.
Cleveland was starting rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel, and the Vikings' defensive coordinator was 9-1 against rookie quarterbacks heading into the game. So, if the Vikings did lose, it would have been an even bigger indictment of head coach Ben Johnson and QB Caleb Williams.
The Lions, on the other hand, had no issues handling their Week 5 opponent. Detroit defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 37-24. However, don't let the final score fool you; this game wasn't close. Cincinnati was held without a touchdown until the fourth quarter, when they scored three.
Detroit's defense intercepted Jake Browning three times and almost had a few more turnovers. Offensively, the Lions punted five times and fumbled once. Still, this is their fourth straight game scoring 30 or more points after putting up 52 in Week 2 against the Bears.
In Week 5, the Bears rested and prepared for the stretch ahead while their divisional rivals kept winning. The Lions continue to prove that their Week 1 performance was just a fluke and that they are legitimate contenders. At the same time, the Vikings continue to show resilience. If Chicago hopes to stay in the NFC North race, their margin for error moving forward is shrinking fast.