👋 Good morning!
Let’s check in on Kevin Byard III’s checklist from last week…
✅ Good: Clinch the playoffs
✅ Better: Win the NFC North
❌ Slightly Better: Get the No. 1 seed
🔲 Best: Go win a Super Bowl
Snip-Snap, Snip-Snap
Good news: the Bears can hang with just about anyone.
The bad news? The dream for the No. 1 seed in the NFC is officially dead after Sunday night’s 42-38 loss.
So Close: The 49ers scored six offensive touchdowns. The Bears responded with one defensive score and four offensive touchdowns.
Despite allowing 42 points, somehow, like seemingly every other game this season, it still came down to the final play.
After marching 63 yards in two minutes, the Bears had a shot at second-and-goal from the 49ers’ 2-yard line with four seconds left.
But the play looked disjointed from the jump. The snap came as the play clock expired, the pass protection failed almost immediately, and Caleb Williams’ last-ditch scramble effort and back-foot throw just fell short.
Ben Johnson on the final play: “We didn't quite get aligned in the formation we wanted to. It's on me. I didn't give (Williams) the call fast enough, and so he's trying to piecemeal it together. I gotta do a better job on that.”
Caleb Williams on the final play: “We ended up getting lined up with not much time (on the play clock). We were slightly lined up wrong. I didn't have enough time to be able to fix it. ... We just had to try to make something out of nothing in that situation. And then we had a shot. With all of that going on, time running down, us misaligning, things like that. We had a shot, and (I've) just gotta give my guys a shot in that situation.”
Switching Back & Forth: Despite falling short, Williams and the Bears’ offense were phenomenal.
Sunday also marked the first time in NFL history that a game has been tied at 7-7, 14-14, 21-21, 28-28 and 35-35 (NBC). Insane.
Williams eclipsed 300 passing yards in a game for the first time since December 22nd, 2024, vs. the Detroit Lions. He finished Sunday night with 330 yards on 25 of 42 passing with two touchdowns.
That means Williams enters Week 18 against the Lions 270 passing yards away from becoming the first in Bears history to hit the 4,000-yard mark. He’s only 109 yards from breaking the Bears’ single-season record held by Erik Kramer (3,838 in 1995).
D’Andre Swift also has a very good chance to break his career high in rushing yards (1,049 in 2023) next week. His 54-yard performance in San Francisco brought him to 1,047 yards this season. Swift is also just eight yards shy of his most yards from scrimmage in a season (1,345 in 2024).
Luther Burden III (eight receptions, 138 yards, one touchdown) appeared to suffer an injury on the final play. Burden III, however, said in the locker room after the loss that he was “tired as hell.”
Noah Sewell also suffered an ankle injury in the third quarter, which required him to be carted off the field. He was immediately ruled out.
Now comes the tricky part: Week 18 vs. the Lions at 3:25 p.m. next Sunday.
The Eagles’ win and the Bears’ loss yesterday also means the Bears’ magic number for the No. 2 seed remains at one. That likely means no resting any starters next week.
Pick your poison. Here are the scenarios:
IF Bears def. Lions OR Commanders def. Eagles
WC Game: Bears vs. Packers
IF Lions def. Bears AND Eagles def. Commanders AND Seahawks def. 49ers AND Rams def. Falcons (Week 17) AND Rams def. Cardinals
WC Game: Bears vs. 49ers
IF Lions def. Bears AND Eagles def. Commanders AND 49ers def. Seahawks AND Rams def. Falcons (Week 17) AND Rams def. Cardinals
WC Game: Bears vs. Seahawks
IF Lions def. Bears AND Eagles def. Commanders AND (Falcons def. Rams (Week 17) OR Cardinals def. Rams)
WC Game: Bears vs. Rams
Penguins 7, Blackhawks 3: Gross. After a great effort in Dallas against the Stars on Saturday night, last night just wasn’t near the same level for the Blackhawks.
Spencer Knight lasted only 12 minutes before he was pulled after allowing four goals on seven shots. Arvid Soderblom wasn’t much better, letting in three goals on 15 shots faced. Knight then relieved Soderblom in the third period.
Tyler Bertuzzi scored his third goal of the weekend (two in Dallas) with less than a second left in the third period. Nick Foligno, who was activated from injured reserve before puck drop and playing in his first game since November 15th, scored his first goal of the season. Wyatt Kaiser tied his career-high with his fourth goal of the year.
To make room for Foligno, the Blackhawks added Frank Nazar (upper-body) to the injured reserve.
Since losing Connor Bedard on December 12th, the Blackhawks are 1-6-0.
Flamethrower: The Cubs have agreed to terms with hard-throwing RHP Hunter Harvey on a one-year deal worth $6 million.
Harvey, 31, threw just 10.2 innings for the Kansas City Royals between a groin strain and an adductor strain that ended his season in August. A back injury also ended his 2024 season prematurely.
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Great Question, Peck…
🐻 Hoge & Jahns
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Talk to you tomorrow!
– P.N.
