Heavily favored Bears must be wary of scary 'trap game' vs. dangerous Browns

Sandwiched between high-profile games against the rival Green Bay Packers, the Chicago Bears better pay attention to Sunday's "trap game" vs. the Cleveland Browns.

Bears-Browns | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

In the wake of last Sunday's exhilarating, heartbreaking loss to the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears fans are:

*Dissecting and assigning blame to the final, fatal play which resulted in a game-ending interception in the end zone.

*Analyzing Ben Johnson's frosty, drive-by, post-game "handshake" with Packers' head coach Matt LaFleur.

MORE: Bears fans and national media hotly debating final-play interception in Packers loss

*Agonizing over their team falling from No. 1 to No. 7 in NFC Playoffs seeding.

*Champing at the bit at the rematch with the Packers, which will take place Saturday night, Dec. 20 at will undoubtedly be a frenzied Soldier Field.

And therein lies the problem. Here's hoping Johnson and the Bears aren't following suit, because none of the above involves an acknowledgment, attention or energy about this week's opponent: the Cleveland Browns.

It's a recipe for the perfect - scary - "trap game."

With Bears fans already doing it, it would be easy for players to also totally overlook the Browns and focus their attention on getting revenge on the Packers. Chicago is a heavy, touchdown favorite over Cleveland. The lowly Browns are 3-10, with playoff hopes that vanished two months ago. They have won only road game all season - the Bears are 4-1 at home - and are coming off last week's loss to the NFL's worst team in the Tennessee Titans.

MORE: Despite tough loss to Packers, Bears still have clear path to NFC North

The Browns are bad, but also dangerous. Myles Garrett has 20 sacks, seven more than the next closest player. And rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders threw for 364 yards last Sunday. And, oh by the way, who did the Browns beat earlier this season? The Green Bay Packers.

Of all the positive things Johnson has done this season with the Bears, this week may be his most difficult coaching job. For the revenge rematch with the Packers in Week 16 to mean anything, the Bears have to pay attention and take care of business this week.

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Bears-Browns | Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

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