It just makes sense that the 2020 NFL season is fitting the narrative of the year in general: unpredictable and downright hard to believe.
Amidst a global pandemic that’s showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon, the teams with the best records entering Week 6 are hardly the collection anyone would’ve thought during the summer.
Four teams that didn’t qualify for the 2019 playoffs already have four wins this year, and four of the teams that did make the playoffs in ’19 have lost more than they won through five weeks.
Four teams that didn't make the playoffs last year have four wins: Steelers, Rams, Bears and Browns. Two others are over .500: Colts and Bucs. Four 2019 playoff teams are under .500 — Houston, Philly, Vikings and defending NFC champion San Francisco. The Saints could make it 5.
— Mark Craig (@markcraignfl) October 12, 2020
This all adds up to a flip-the-script season and a potential playoff field that will look wildly different from last year.
Among those four-win teams is the Chicago Bears, who after defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5 improved their record to a hard-to-believe 4-1.
The Bears’ success is still questioned by most league pundits because of how they’ve secured their wins. Three of their four victories required come-from-behind efforts, with two of their first three wins including 16-point comebacks, the first time that’s happened in NFL history.
Chicago travels to Carolina to take on the 3-2 Panthers on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 1:00 p.m. EST.