Kevin Byard's simple message for Chicago Bears: "We haven't accomplished anything yet"

The Chicago Bears haven’t been a winning team in quite some time. In fact, the only players left from the last time the Bears stumbled into the playoffs (2020) are Cairo Santos, Jaylon Johnson, and Cole Kmet—the latter two of which were rookies at the time. With all the losing that’s happened between now and then, this team hasn’t known much about the sweet art of winning until this year.

But this squad has bigger game to hunt, and that’s why veteran safety Kevin Byard’s perspective is so important right now.

The 10-year veteran has seen plenty of postseason action in his career, including being on the 2019 Tennessee Titans squad that ended Tom Brady’s career with the New England Patriots and went to an AFC Championship. He also played for a Philadelphia Eagles team two years ago fresh off a Super Bowl appearance, though they failed to make it back in 2023-24.

So when he looks at where the Chicago Bears sit right now, he’s not as impressed as many outsiders are. Because he knows how much work there’s still left to do.

“We’re not thinking about the playoffs, and that’s something I try to preach to the guys,” Byard told reporters on Wednesday. “We haven’t done anything yet. We’re 7-3, I get it, the city’s excited—you know what I mean, it hasn’t been a whole lot of winning here, but we haven’t accomplished anything. And honestly, nobody remembers what you do in October and September and even this early part of November. People remember what you do in November, December, and January, so that’s what we want to be remembered by. … Because if you want to be remembered as a great player in this league or a great player in this city, it’s about what we do from here on now, it’s not about what we’ve done before.”

Great leadership doesn’t guarantee anything. But man, as a #Bears fan, you’ve got to feel good when someone like Kevin Byard has everyone’s attention in the locker room.

This is Byard today when asked if the team is thinking about the playoffs: pic.twitter.com/2WkSDMuwsb
— Mike Berman (@MikeBermanNBC) November 19, 2025

On one hand, it’s okay for fans and even for players who have been through the ups and downs with this squad, like Johnson and Kmet, to feel some satisfaction that they might finally get their chance to shine in the playoffs with a team that didn’t just back in at 8-8. Despite their flaws, this Ben Johnson-led squad has proven its mental toughness time and again, with five come-from-behind victories this year.

The beauty of having players like Byard around is that he helps keep this locker room hungry for more. Because he knows what it takes to get to the doorstep of the Super Bowl, and he knows what it’s like to watch supposed “favorites” fall apart before they get their title shot.

Chicago is also going into the toughest part of its schedule, with two games against the Packers coming up, a tilt with the Lions who spanked them in Week 2, and solid nonconference opponents like the 49ers on the docket.

Now’s no time for the Bears to let their foot off the gas, not when they’re actively holding the top divisional spot in their hands. Helping the locker room maintain that focus from start to finish is exactly why players like Byard are here.

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