Category: Playoffs

NFC Playoff Picture: Who to root for in Week 14 as Bears battle for Wild Card spot

With the Bears “in the hunt” for a Wild Card berth, they need the Vikings and Rams to lose 2 of their last 4 games — starting in Week 14.

Following a convincing win over the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night, the Chicago Bears are very much “in the hunt” for a playoff berth.

Sitting at 7-6, the Bears are currently one game out of that final Wild Card spot, where they’re battling the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Rams for that sixth seed.

While the Bears need to take care of business in their final three games — including matchups against Green Bay, Kansas City and Minnesota — they still need some help from teams facing the Vikings and Rams in these final four games.

Let’s take a look at the two games that Bears fans should keep an eye on in the NFC playoff race in Week 14:

Lions (3-8-1) vs. Vikings (8-4)

12:00 p.m. CT, FOX

While it’s possible the Lions could beat the Vikings, it’s not likely. Not with Detroit down to their third-string quarterback David Blough and with one of the NFL’s worst defenses. Then there’s the fact that the Vikings offense has been efficient and kept up with the Seahawks in last Monday’s loss.

The Vikings are still very much battling the Packers for the NFC North title or, at worst, a Wild Card spot. While the Bears essentially need to win out to have a shot at that final playoff spot, they also need the Vikings to lose two of their final four games. While one of those is not likely to be against the Lions on Sunday, Minnesota does have to play the Packers (Week 16) and Bears (Week 17), both of which could be losses.

Seahawks (10-2) vs. Rams (7-5)

Sunday Night Football, 7:20 p.m. CT, NBC

This is certainly the most important game of the week as the Rams will host the NFC’s current No. 1 seed in the Seahawks.

The Seahawks are battling the 49ers for the NFC West title — and a top seed in the playoffs — which means that these final four games are crucial. Following a hard-fought victory over the Vikings last Monday night, expect to see a focused Seahawks team come Sunday night. Although we certainly know that division games sometimes have a way of surprising people.

If the Bears can win out in their final three games, the Rams need to lose two of their last four games for Chicago to sneak past them for that final Wild Card spot. Luckily, the Rams still have to face the Seahawks (Week 14) and 49ers (Week 16) this season.

Bears get help in NFC Wild Card race as Vikings fall to Seahawks on MNF

The Bears have an opportunity to get back into contention for a Wild Card berth following Minnesota’s loss vs. Seattle.

Don’t look now, but the Chicago Bears are about to play meaningful football in December starting Thursday night against the Dallas Cowboys.

While the Bears cling to slim playoff hopes, they got plenty of help throughout Week 13. The Philadelphia Eagles and Carolina Panthers both lost, which dropped them to 5-7. Chicago sits in eighth place in the NFC heading into Week 14.

Although it wasn’t a perfect Week 13, as the Los Angeles Rams routed the Arizona Cardinals to improve to 7-5. Given the Rams hold a tiebreaker over the Bears, they need to lose two of their final four games — and the Bears to win out — for Chicago to best them. That, or the Bears can lose just once if the Rams lose three of their final four games.

But perhaps none more so important than the Minnesota Vikings losing to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football. The loss dropped the Vikings to 8-4, and the Bears are now just two games out of that final Wild Card spot.

According to FiveThirtyEight, the Bears playoff chances shifted from a 2% to 3% chance with Minnesota’s loss to Seattle.

The Bears still have a long road ahead of them. Not only do they need to win out just to have a chance, but they need a lot of help from the Vikings and Rams along the way.

If the Bears do win out — which is a big if, considering they have games against the Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs and Vikings — they need both the Vikings and Rams to lose two of their final four games to take control of that final Wild Card spot.

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Bears get help with Eagles, Panthers losses in NFC Wild Card race

The road to a Wild Card playoff berth won’t be an easy one for the Bears. But they got some help with losses by the Eagles and Panthers.

As the Chicago Bears cling to slim playoff hopes, all they can do is focus on doing their jobs — while hoping for a lot of help along the way.

The road to a Wild Card playoff berth won’t be an easy one. While the Bears essentially need to win out in their final four games, they also need some help from other teams.

Heading into Sunday, the Bears sat in eighth in the NFC — two spots out of that final Wild Card spot. They trailed the Los Angeles Rams, who were 6-5, and led the Philadelphia Eagles and Carolina Panthers, who were 5-6 heading into Week 13.

The Bears got some help from the Miami Dolphins, who upset the Eagles 37-31, as well as from the Washington Redskins, who upset the Carolina Panthers 29-21. Those losses dropped the Eagles and Panthers to 5-7 on the season and gave the Bears a little wiggle room as they vie for that playoff berth.

But it wasn’t all good news on Sunday, as the Rams pounded the Arizona Cardinals 34-7 to advance to 7-5 on the season. The good news is that the Rams will face the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys in the coming weeks. If the Bears can win out — and the Rams lose two of their final four games — they might have a chance at a Wild Card berth.

Although that all depends on how the Minnesota Vikings fare in their final five games. The Vikings (8-3) will face the Seahawks (9-2) on Monday Night Football, and the Bears also need the Vikings to lose three of their final five games. Minnesota will also face the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Chargers, Green Bay Packers and Bears to close out the regular season.

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NFC Playoff Picture: Who to root for as Bears make Wild Card push

The Bears are going to need some help if they’re going to make a Wild Card push in the final quarter of the season. Here’s who to root for.

With the Bears’ Thanksgiving victory over the Lions, they improved to 6-6 on the season and kept their slim playoff hopes alive.

There’s a lot that needs to happen if the Bears are going to make a push for a Wild Card berth. First off, they essentially need to win out over these final four games, which include games against the Cowboys, Packers, Chiefs and Vikings.

Even if the Bears are able to do that, they’re going to need help from other NFC Wild Card hopefuls, most notably the Vikings and Rams, if they’re going to have a shot down the stretch in the fourth quarter of the season.

While the Bears need a lot of help, it’ll be good to see them playing meaningful football in December.

Here are four games that Bears fans should keep an eye on in the NFC playoff race:

Panthers (5-6) vs. Redskins (2-9)

This should be an easy conference matchup for the Panthers, who will face a struggling Redskins team led by Dwayne Haskins. Then again, the Panthers have lost four of their last five games.

The Bears currently hold an edge over the Panthers in terms of conference record, which means that even if they beat the Redskins they’ll sit behind Chicago after Week 13.

Eagles (5-6) vs. Dolphins (2-9)

You figure this is another easy matchup for a struggling Eagles team that needs a win, and Bears might want to root for the Eagles against the Dolphins.

In terms of the NFC East, if the Bears are able to beat the Cowboys on Thursday night, then Bears fans should root for the Eagles to win the division as Chicago would own the tiebreaker over Dallas. The Eagles beat the Bears 22-14 earlier this season.

Rams (6-5) vs. Cardinals (3-7-1)

The Bears know firsthand how wonky divisional games can be, and Chicago fans will certainly be rooting for a Cardinals upset of the Rams on Sunday.

This is another team that the Bears need some help from as the Rams own the head-to-head tiebreaker over Chicago following a Week 11 primetime win. If the Cardinals can beat the Rams, Los Angeles would drop to 6-6 and the Bears would be a half game out of that seventh Wild Card spot. The Rams will face the Seahawks, Cowboys, 49ers and Cardinals again in their final four games.

Vikings (8-3) vs. Seahawks (9-2)

This Monday Night Football showdown is certainly the most important game of the week as everyone in the NFC Wild Card race is chasing the Vikings. The NFC’s current wild card teams will face-off on the primetime stage, and Bears fans should be rooting heavily for the Seahawks.

The Bears currently own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Vikings, and they’ll play them again in the regular-season finale. If everything goes Chicago’s way, that Week 17 contest could be a play-in for a Wild Card berth. The Bears would need the Vikings to lose three of their final five games, starting Monday night against Seattle.

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NFC playoff picture after Week 12: Where do the Bears stand?

While the Bears’ playoff hopes are slim right now, what’s the likelihood of them making the playoffs if they win out?

While the Bears’ playoff hopes remain slim, there’s another meaningful week of football as Chicago remains “in the hunt” in the NFC playoff picture.

Here’s what the current NFC playoff picture looks like after Week 12:

The Bears (5-6) have lost head-to-head matchups against the Rams (6-5) and Eagles (5-6), which doesn’t bode well in the race for a wildcard spot.

The New York Times created an algorithm that lets you simulate the remainder of the season. If the Bears were to win out — which is a tall order — their odds to make the playoffs increase from 2 to 66 percent.

The best hope for Chicago’s slim playoff chances are for them to win out in their final five games to finish 10-6. But it won’t be easy against the Cowboys, Packers, Chiefs and Vikings.

So let’s play a game of “what if?” If the Bears finish 10-6, they’d need the following to happen to lock up a wildcard berth:

  • The Rams to finish 9-7 plus one of the following…
  • The Vikings lose three of their last five, finishing 10-6 with the Bears owning the tiebreaker
  • The Seahawks lose their last five games (including a primetime matchup against the Vikings)

Let’s be honest, the way that this Bears team has been playing recently doesn’t give much confidence that they can beat the Cowboys, Packers, Chiefs or Vikings yet alone win six straight games to close the regular season.

But if they manage to do the impossible — and get a little help along the way — we might be looking at a different conversation here in a few weeks. Crazier things have happened.

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