Bear Digest

Steelers' stunning victory over Lions propels Bears back to the playoffs

In an ironic twist, an old foe became the Chicago Bears' best friend in a critical moment.
Pete Martuneac|
Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Week 16 of the 2025 NFL season has been one of the best weekends in recent Chicago Bears history. First, the Bears pulled off a sensational comeback victory over the Green Bay Packers on Saturday night. Then, as Sunday afternoon turned to evening, an old foe punched Chicago's playoff ticket for the first time since 2020. Aaron Rodgers of all people led the Pittsburgh Steelers to an emphatic win over the Detroit Lions, locking the Bears in for a Wild Card slot.

It was a stunning ending to a chaotic game. On 4th and goal with six seconds remaining, the Lions technically scored a game-winning touchdown as time expired, following a completed pass and lateral. But an offensive pass interference call negated the score and ended the game with the Steelers ahead 29-24.

It may have been an odd feeling for Bears fans to become Aaron Rodgers fans for a day, but it paid off in the end. Securing a playoff spot with two weeks remaining in the regular season releases a ton of pressure from this team. Their upcoming match with the 49ers is still important, as a win there would clinch the NFC North title, but a loss would no longer be potentially season-ending.

Additionally, Chicago's Week 18 game against the Lions could now very well be meaningless, giving them the opportunity to rest their starters after a long, brutal season (behold the downside of an early Week 5 bye).

The Bears have already proven they're no pretenders

Back in November, when the Bears first took a lead in the NFC North, fans and analysts wondered whether the Bears were contenders or pretenders. Back in November, this was a fair question. The Bears may have been atop the division, but they'd run through the soft part of their schedule against bottom-feeder teams, and they didn't even look all that good doing it, either.

Since then, the Bears provided an emphatic answer to that question, proving they are contenders. They downed the Steelers despite missing six of eleven defensive starters. Then they marched into Philadelphia and defeated the defending champs in prime time, and on Saturday, pulled off an epic comeback victory over the mighty Packers.

There is no question now that the Bears belong in the playoffs. They very well may lose in the Wild Card (someone has to lose), but that would not diminish the success of this season. Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson are the future of this franchise, and so long as GM Ryan Poles does his job well, these Bears should be playoff contenders for many years to come.

Caleb William
Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

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Pete Martuneac
PETE MARTUNEAC

A former Marine and Purdue Boilermaker, Pete has been covering the Chicago Bears since 2022 as a senior contributor on BearsTalk. He lives with his wife, two kids and loyal dog.

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