NFL Power Rankings: The NFC North goes 0-4

The bad news is the Chicago Bears saw their five game winning streak snapped on Sunday against the New York Giants in overtime.

The good news is the other three teams in the NFC North also lost, so Chicago maintains their 1.5 game lead over the second place Minnesota Vikings.

NFC NORTH
Bears: 8-4
Vikings: 6-5-1
Packers: 4-7-1
Lions: 4-8

The Bears are also still in the third seed of the NFC playoff picture, so there’s some more good news.

And we have even more good news for Bears’ fans courtesy of Jacob...

Just realized something: with Detroit’s loss today, the #Bears will not finish in last place in the NFC North for the first time in five years. pic.twitter.com/UsFiphpVTz

— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) December 3, 2018

The last time the Bears didn’t finish in last place was 2013, so this is a nice baby-step in the rebuild.

Now let’s take a trip around the internet to see how the experts view the Bears after losing to a last place team. We start with the Mothership, SB Nation, and they have Chicago at number four again this week.

Over at ESPN they have the Bears dropping two sports to 8 overall.

We’re No. 1 in: Takeaways. It’s all about the Bears’ defense. Heading into Week 13, Chicago’s defense ranked No. 1 in takeaways and points scored off turnovers. The Bears also had 15 players with at least one sack, the most in the NFL. Plus, the Bears were tied for the league lead with 10 players having at least one interception.

The USA Today has the Bears ranked like this,

9. Bears (8): Helps when everyone else in NFC North is also losing. But they won’t cruise to division crown, especially with Rams up next on Sunday night.

CBS Sports dropped the Bears three places to 8 overall.

Even with a dominant defense, they can’t just line up and win with anybody at quarterback. They need Mitch Trubisky back this week against the Rams.

Yahoo sports has it like this.

7. Chicago Bears (8-4, LW: 6)

Losses like Sunday happen. The Bears were on the road with a backup quarterback and lost in overtime. They were fortunate to force overtime, but it’s still not the worst loss. Also, nobody else in the NFC North is good enough to catch them.

The Chicago Tribune has it like this.

7. Bears 8-4 (5): After facing the Giants (21st-ranked offense), Lions (twice, 23rd), Vikings (16th), Bills (31st) and Jets (30th) in recent weeks, they will see how their defense stacks up against the second-ranked Rams offense on Sunday night.

Here’s how the Washington Post has it.

8. Chicago Bears (8-4) | Last Week’s Rank: 6

The comeback to force overtime against the Giants made things interesting, and the play call for the tying touchdown at the end of regulation was wonderfully daring. But the loss underscores the Bears’ need to have Mitchell Trubisky back in the lineup at quarterback. They’re not an NFC heavyweight without him.

And here’s how the Houston Chronicle has it.

8. Chicago (8-4) | Last week: 5

After losing to the Giants, the Bears host the Rams on Sunday night. They’ve got a 1 ½-game lead over Minnesota in the NFC North.

The Sporting News has the Bears like this.

7. Chicago Bears 8-4 (last week: 5)

The Bears tried to win another one without Mitchell Trubisky, but the Giants didn’t let them, pulling out all the stops on offense. It’s easy to forget, even with that defense, Chicago is overachieving this season.

Everyone seems to believe that the Bears next opponent, the Rams, is the best team in the NFL. There’s also a consensus that the Bears need Trubisky back to have a shot at winning. Win or lose this Sunday night, we’re going to find out a lot about the Bears team.

What are your thoughts on the Power Rankings this week?

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