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Bears Rise From the Bottom

After their first win and two strong offensive performances, the Bears are no longer the consensus worst team but some pollsters seem to get carried away with it.
Gene Chamberlain|
Bears Rise From the Bottom
Bears Rise From the Bottom

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Chicago Bears

It's official.

The Bears are no longer bottom feeders according to NFL power rankings, as the consecutive stronger offensive showings and one win have elevated them in the eyes of every major poll after they had been dead last everywhere.

Now, the problem seems to be keeping everything in perspective. 

All it took was a win and some people are getting carried away.

Sports Illustrated's Conor Orr has them thinking about .500.

"Certainly, facing off against the Broncos and Commanders in back-to-back weeks helps your confidence. But with the Vikings and Raiders coming down the pike, why can’t they be hoping to play for .500 in Los Angeles just before Halloween?" he wrote.

USA Today's Nate Davis won't go .500, but almost.

"Certainly, facing off against the Broncos and Commanders in back-to-back weeks helps your confidence," he wrote. "But with the Vikings and Raiders coming down the pike, why can’t they be hoping to play for .500 in Los Angeles just before Halloween?"

The next thing you know, someone is going to say playoffs.

"Playoffs? Did you say playoffs?"

The Bears have won one in a row and no one should get carried away by it.

What's really good news is Carolina remains the worst team in every poll and that means first pick in the draft for the Bears if it holds true.

SI.com: 30th

Orr elevated them two spots and pointed out how their offense has come to life under Luke Getsy.

"While I am not telling everyone that all is well, I am saying that we should take a moment to notice an offensive staff that is responding to what they are learning about their quarterback in real time," he wrote.

NFL.com 30th

Eric Edholm referred to the Bears win as a "...bolt out the blue, but it did continue some of the offensive gains made in most of the loss to the Broncos, so there’s evidence that things are developing on that side of the ball."

CBSSports.com: 24th

Pete Prisco, feeling generous, gave the Bears a huge boost up from last to 24th.

"Two good weeks in a row for Justin Fields is a great indicator going forward," he wrote. "The Bears looked good in blowing out the Commanders."

Yahoo Sports: 29th

Frank Schwab likes what they did but still thinks Caleb Williams should be the Bears pick in the draft if Carolina winds up with the worst record.

"It's hard to imagine the Bears would pass on Caleb Williams if they end up with the top overall draft pick, though Chicago has already experienced the boon from a trade down from the No. 1 pick. At least Fields is making it a conversation," Schwab wrote.

USA Today: 26th

Davis focuses attention away from the Fields and DJ Moore show to the running game's resurgence. Problem is, they have three injured running backs

Fox Sports: 29th

Frank Helman boosted them three slots and joined in on the thoughts about bigger things.

"They're still a very flawed team, but they'd absolutely have a chance at a winning record had Justin Fields played this well for five weeks, instead of two," he wrote.

NBC Sports/Pro Football Talk: 26th

Mike Florio wants to know what every Bears fan will find out on Sunday. "Can they string two wins together?" he asked.

The Sporting News: 31st

Vinnie Iyer remains a tough sell, elevating them only one spot but pointed to more clear sailing ahead for Fields. "Now he needs to keep building on it with an easy defensive schedule ahead," Iyer wrote.

ESPN: 29th

The Bears climbed three spots and beat writer's fantasy surprise was a surprise: DJ Moore.

"In theory, this shouldn't be a surprise. The Bears brought Moore in to elevate Chicago's offense. He should be getting double-digit targets a game, but the fact that he's second in fantasy points scored after the struggles this passing game went through in three of its first five games is the best outcome any fantasy owner could have hoped for," she wrote.

The 33rd Team: 26th

Ryan Reynolds views the biggest problem as not Fields but the defense.

"QB Justin Fields isn’t consistent, but he’s shown he can lead a high-performing offense many times now. Chicago’s defense cannot be relied upon at all," he wrote.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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