The hidden reason the Bears are a threat to win it all

It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that the Chicago Bears will come into Sunday night’s tilt with the Los Angeles Rams as home underdogs, even after dispatching the Green Bay Packers in epic fashion last weekend.

The Rams are, after all, considered by many to be the best team in football, led by likely MVP Matthew Stafford, a No. 1-ranked offense that includes Davante Adams and Puka Nacua, and a defense that finished the season 10th in points allowed.

But the Bears, while not nearly as heralded, might have an ace in the hole that the Rams don’t yet have an answer for. And no, that’s not referring to the Arctic temperatures the two teams will square off in on Sunday—conditions that could make the game one of the coldest in Soldier Field’s recent history.

As ESPN’s Seth Walder lays out in his preview of the Bears-Rams matchup, Chicago has an even more dangerous card in its arsenal: the threat of a complete football game, something it didn’t put together at all in the Wild Card Round against Green Bay

“What makes Chicago so threatening is that it won despite not even being the best version of itself. In the regular season, the Bears averaged a 48% success rate on designed runs (third best), but that number dropped to 28% against Green Bay. And even in victory, [Caleb] Williams had a 28% off-target rate and a minus-14% completion percentage over expectation (per NFL Next Gen Stats) -- both solidly worse than his regular-season marks,” Walder explained.

“The Bears will be home underdogs against the Rams, and Los Angeles' offense should have a serious advantage over the Bears' defense. But the Bears can generate turnovers, forcing a league-high 33 in the regular season. They'll need more of that turnover variance to go their way against the Rams, but it's doable.”

While that’s not exactly a full-throated vote of confidence in the Bears, it does raise an extremely important point.

The Bears flopped in the first half and were able to surge back on the strength of their second-half adjustments, something they do better than any team in the league. Of course, it would behoove Chicago to start faster against the explosive Rams offense and disruptive defensive front. However, the Carolina Panthers proved Los Angeles is vulnerable to comebacks, too, overcoming an abysmal first half to actually take a late lead over Stafford and Co. before his game-winning touchdown throw late in the fourth quarter.

But what if the Bears were to throw the first punch with a dominating first-quarter touchdown drive for once, and Williams scintillates early, not just late? And, assuming they can stop the rushing tandem of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum, why couldn’t they force Stafford, who doesn’t typically play well in the elements, into turnovers like the ghastly pick he threw against the Panthers?

With the Packers now behind them and riding high, there’s a chance the Bears might give the Rams a lot more than they bargain for—up to and including an early vacation. Because if they can beat good teams like the Packers with a C-minus effort for half the game, there’s no reason they can’t cut the Rams down to size with their best effort.

And if they can beat the Rams? Well...let's just say those Super Bowl Sunday plans might get more interesting.

More Chicago Bears News:

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