👋 Good morning!
It’s December 15th, and the Chicago Bears are 10-4 and back in first place in the NFC North.
I think it’s only fair we take a glance at their clinching scenario(s) for Week 16.
Their magic number to clinch a playoff spot is down to 1 ½.
Next weekend, all it’d take is for a Bears win and a Lions loss (or tie) to get the job done. If the Lions lose and the Bears and Packers tie, that’d also do the trick.
Just beat the Packers … and then we can start talking about division-clinching scenarios.
Back On Top
Remember when the Bears weren’t sitting atop the NFC North? Gosh, those were a rough six days.
Sunday’s affair at Soldier Field was a butt-whoopin’, plain and simple.
Good: D’Andre Swift’s two-touchdown, 98-yard day on the ground is probably one of the least heralded stellar performances for a Bears running back in recent memory.
On a day when just about everybody was a notch slower due to the extremely frigid temperature and wind off Lake Michigan, Swift looked crisp and quick.
Better: The saying goes: “Defense wins championships.”
But the Bears are busy taking things one game at a time. On Sunday, the saying became: “Defense beats the crap out of Shedeur Sanders and the Cleveland Browns.”
Jaylon Johnson came away with his first takeaway of the season. C.J. Gardner-Johnson got an interception for the second straight week. Austin Booker and company combined for five sacks, including Grady Jarrett’s first with the Bears.
But no play got things headed in a better direction for the Bears than D’Marco Jackson’s tipped interception halfway through the third quarter to set up the Bears at the Browns’ 22.
Ben Johnson on Jackson’s pick: “That was a game-changer to me. You're always looking for a little bit to spark your team, ignite your team there, and in the second half, that's really what it was. We really needed it because we were able to capitalize and make that into 21-3, and it felt like we took firm control of the game there at that point.”
Jackson also recorded his first career sack and received a game ball from Ben Johnson in the postgame locker room.
Best: It doesn’t matter that Caleb Williams was only 17-for-28 for 242 yards. Eye test alone, that might’ve been the finest performance of his career, all things considered.
Williams connected with DJ Moore in the end zone not once but twice. Both throws were impressive in their own right.
His first to Moore had perfect touch and location for an easy three-yard score. His second was the wildest throw I think I’ve ever seen a Bears QB make, rifling a ball into a window that essentially didn’t exist, yet still hit Moore right in the hands.
Caleb Williams, when asked if his throw to Moore was “ill-advised”: “No, I can make any throw.”
He did just about that on Sunday.
Williams became the first Bears passer to throw for at least 20 touchdowns in consecutive seasons since Jay Cutler did so in 2014 and 2015 (h/t Chris Emma). He also surpassed Justin Fields on the Bears’ passing yards leaderboard, moving into 10th place, 420 yards behind Bob Avellini.
The Bears, however, couldn’t escape Sunday completely worry-free.
Receiver Rome Odunze, who missed last week with a foot injury, was initially ruled active at 10:30 a.m. before aggravating the injury in warmups, ending his day before it began.
Ben Johnson did not have an update on Odunze after the game.
Luther Burden III, who led the team in receptions (6) and receiving yards (84) on Sunday, exited the game in the second half with an apparent ankle injury and did not return.
Additionally, the Bears opened the game with their fourth opening offensive drive three-and-out in the last five weeks.
Yet, for all the worries, the Bears are still in first place in the NFC North and still control their destiny for their first division title since 2018.
Not bad.
Bears 31, Browns 3
Pelicans 114, Bulls 104: There’s bad and then there’s “0-and-2-against-the-worst-team-in-the-league” bad. Unfortunately for the Bulls, they now fall into the latter category.
Things have gone from bad to worse across the board, and no decision was quite as puzzling as the one to give Patrick Williams the same amount of court time as Matas Buzelis in Sunday’s loss.
Coby White led the Bulls with 20 points. Nobody on the Bulls reached double digits in rebounds or assists.
The Pelicans actually jumped the Washington Wizards at the bottom of the league’s standings, meaning they aren’t the worst in the league. The Bulls, however, have surrendered two of the team’s five wins through their first 27 games of the season.
The Waiting Is The Hardest Part: Connor Bedard will not make the Blackhawks’ road trip to Canada after suffering a shoulder injury in the last moment of Friday night’s loss to the St. Louis Blues.
Bedard underwent an MRI on Saturday to determine the extent and severity of the injury. An update on his timeline to return is expected as soon as today.
Without Bedard on Saturday, the Blackhawks were relatively lifeless in their 4-0 loss at home against Patrick Kane and the Detroit Red Wings.
One positive note from Saturday? The Blackhawks welcomed back organist Frank Pellico, anthem singer Wayne Messmer and public address speaker Harvey Wittenberg for a special nod to Chicago Stadium.
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– P.N.
