With their best two offensive players out of the lineup for at least the next 2 weeks (Forte out 2-6 weeks, Cutler ain't coming back this year he's a pussy). The Bears defense is okay but nothing special (ranked 30th in pass defense, 8th in rush defense). Without any production from the offense I don't see how this team can beat out the Lions, Falcons, Giants, Cowboys. The Bears have ZERO chance at winning their division so now that leaves only 2 available spots for them to make the postseason and that is through the Wild Card.
Their remaining schedule is @Denver, Seattle, @Green Bay, @Minnesota. 3 out of their 4 games are on the road with one loss begin an almost guarantee loss to Green Bay in Lambeau (Bears definitely ain't winning this game on Christmas night with a healthy lineup or not). With that being said, I'd say they'd have to go 3-1 at worst to finish the year with a 10-6 record which usually gets you in to a Wild Card spot. There is no guarantee that they are going to be able to go into Denver this Sunday and knock off that red hot Broncos team. There is also no guarantee that the Bears will roll right through this tough and young Seahawks team who aren't officially eliminated just yet but you know they're going to want to finish with a winning record at 9-7 or 8-8. Their last game of the year is against Minnesota which is arguably their easiest game from here on out but that is no guarantee playing against the Vikings on the road in a Rivalry game. You know the Vikings aren't going to just lay on their backs and let the Bears walk all over them.
Before the injuries to Cutler and Forte this team was clicking and was on the right track to make it back to the playoffs this year. I'm not basing this on just the injuries to Forte and Cutler, but other than Devin Hester (you can argue he's only useful on Special Teams), this team has no offensive play makers. So points definitely won't come easy for this team. To be quite honest and I know Bears fans will think otherwise but I truly think this team in done for good this year. How I see it is like this. Whether the Giants or Cowboys end or up winning that division, the second place in that division will take up 1 Wild Card spot. Now that leaves you with 1 open spot that the Falcons, Lions and Bears will all be fighting for in the next 4 upcoming weeks. The Falcons upcoming schedule looks like this: @Carolina, Jacksonville, @New Orleans, Tampa Bay. I'm a die hard Falcons fan but to be completely honest they could very well go 3-1 there without question. Also, they lost to the Saints (a huge division rival) just a few weeks ago at home in OT and we all saw how that game ended. You know the Falcons will have that in the back of their minds come their Week 16 game against the Saints. I know the Bears beat the Falcons all the way back in Week 1, but that team then and the Bears team now isn't the same. But than again if the Bears finish 10-6 and the Falcons finish 10-6 and the Lions finish 9-7 or 8-8, the Bears would get the last playoff spot due to that Week 1 win because the tie breaker will be head-to-head matchup.
I don't have anything wagered yet but at -140 and the scenarios that the Bears and the other teams that are all fighting for the last spot, I really believe that -140 has some legit value on it. Especially if the Bears lose this week in Denver you know that line will go from -140 to somewhere way over -200. Something to think about that's for sure.
Marion Barber as the #1 RB for the rest of the year is not a bad option. He's obviously not up to Forte's level, but he will produce at a decent rate. However without a solid QB, they're screwed, as their receivers just aren't talented enough to make something out of nothing... Of the teams contending for the WC spots (NYG/DET/CHI/ATL), Chicago has the most uphill battle to fight. They need to go 3-1 at least, and even then, Detroit can edge them out in the tiebreaker rules for the WC. However, if Chicago wins this weekend, they're still alive, and Detroit has a tough final three games, so you could be sweating this one out.
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Will the Bears make the Playoffs?
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