The Chicago Bears are entering the most important week of their 2020 season with a postseason berth on the line in Week 17.
The good news is that the Bears are in control of their own destiny. If they win on Sunday, then they’re in. The only problem is they’ll host the Green Bay Packers, a team that will be playing for the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye. It doesn’t help that Green Bay has had Chicago’s number for the better part of a decade-plus.
But the Bears can also snag that seventh seed in the NFC with some help from the Los Angeles Rams, who will host the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. If the Cardinals lose to the Rams, it won’t matter if Chicago wins or loses to Green Bay. But if Arizona beats Los Angeles and the Bears lose, Chicago will be ousted from the playoffs.
To make matters worse, there’s a mess of injuries that threaten that Rams-Cardinals match-up, which includes both starting quarterbacks.
Rams quarterback Jared Goff suffered what’s believed to be a broken right thumb in last Sunday’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. While it was originally believes that the injury would end Goff’s season, he is meeting with Dr. Steven Shin for another opinion. While Goff will indeed need surgery on his thumb, he might be able to play through the injury. Still, his status for Sunday’s game is uncertain.
Rams’ QB Jared Goff is meeting today with Dr. Steven Shin, who treated Drew Brees last year for his thumb injury, per source. Goff will need thumb surgery at some point; the question is when to get it. His status for Sunday remains uncertain.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 28, 2020
Then there’s Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, who suffered what Arizona head coach Kliff Kingsbury called a “lower leg injury” in the closing seconds of last Saturday’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Murray remained on the ground for a good while before leaving the field. Schefter notes that Murray’s status for Sunday is also uncertain.
Cardinals’ HC Kliff Kingsbury said Kyler Murray has a “lower leg injury” and his status for Sunday’s game vs. Rams is uncertain.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 28, 2020
At this point, it sounds like Murray has more of a shot to play than Goff, but we’ll have to see how this week shakes out. But if both can’t go, it’ll be Rams backup quarterback John Wolford and Cardinals backup quarterback Chris Streveler. Both have never attempted a pass in the NFL.
This situation will be worth monitoring heading into a pivotal Week 17 contest, which will be played at the same time that Chicago will be hosting Green Bay at 3:25 p.m. CT.
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