Bear Digest

Glowing Bears Forecast from NFL Network

Adam Rank rarely makes an attempt at objectivity when it comes to the Bears but the NFL Network analyst seems to have gone overboard.
Gene Chamberlain|
USA Today

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Chicago Bears

Most preseason forecasts have the Bears winning six to nine games in the second year of their rebuild.

The over/under for FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, PointsBet and Draftkings is 7 1/2 on Bears wins.

None of this seems to deter NFL Network's Adam Rank a self-proclaimed and celebrated longtime Bears fan.

In the network's prediction for each team's record, Rank has the Bears going somewhere no one else has seen.

He has them at 12-5.  This is a team that has lost 10 straight.

If they don't make the playoffs at 12-5, something's wrong with the NFL playoff system and the NFC. No NFL team has ever won 12 games and missed the playoffs. 

The last 11-win team to miss them was New England in 2008. 

Rank had the Bears beating Detroit once, Minnesota once and Green Bay twice in NFC North games. He had their season sparked by an incredibly hot start at 6-1. The last time they were 6-1 was when they actually started 7-1 in 2012 under Lovie Smith. And then they missed the playoffs anyway.

Rank had them finishing with three straight wins against Atlanta, Arizona and Green Bay.

"Oh this works out perfectly," he said, as he looked at the last three games.

The win prediction at Lambeau Field to close the season really had Rank charged up.

"Highlight that because a win at Lambeau Field...that's right," he concludes. "I might be very biased, I might be very one-sided but I have the Bears with 12 wins this year. Meme me."

If you thought Rank was going to give critical analysis and point out statistics saying Justin Fields has too much growing to do this year to win anything beyond seven or eight games, then you haven't been watching Rank wearing his Chicago Bears jacket or seen the memorabilia he has.

But how ridiculous is the notion?

Betonline.ag has Matt Eberflus as the second-best chance to win coach of the year, at +1100 right behind Sean Payton (+900). The last NFL coach of the year with a team that didn't make the playoffs was Dallas and Jimmy Johnson in 1990.

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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