Bear Digest

What we learned from a playoff weekend without Bears football

Five facts became very evident from the results of the wild card weekend-plus one day and each one can have an impact on Bears future plans.
Gene Chamberlain|
Darrell Taylor closes in as Jayden Daniels gets off a pass in the Hail Mary game earlier this season.
Darrell Taylor closes in as Jayden Daniels gets off a pass in the Hail Mary game earlier this season. | Peter Casey-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Just as happens during a bye week, teams still learn something about their situation when they are not on the field.

The Bears went through a playoff weekend plus one day with no football and they actually should have learned quite a bit with the completion of the Monday night Vikings-Rams game.

Here's what was evident.

1. About the NFC North...

Analysts have looked at the Bears' last-place finish and talked about how hopeless their situation because of the powerhouse NFC North. Three of the league's best teams are ahead of them, how will they ever catch up?

Not so much.

Two games in the wild card round and the NFC North looks greatly overrated.

They weren't really very competitive in either playoff game from the Packers' fumbled kickoff to start its loss to the Eagles to a dominant Vikings offense that couldn't reach 10 points in either of its last two games.

Very little stays the same in the NFL from one year to the next. The Vikings were not expected to be competitive in the division and won 14 games before fizzling out.

Who's to say the Bears can't be a worst-to-first story. There have been 31 teams go from worst to first in this century.

When the Packers and Vikings both finish the season with consecutive losses and the Bears actually dealt one of those defeats to Green Bay, it looks like a much different NFC North than it did when many power rankings had three divisional teams in the league's top six.

2. Ryan Poles' QB Evaluation

The Bears' GM could have drafted C.J. Stroud last year and didn't. He could have drafted Jayden Daniels this year and didn't.

Both of those second QBs drafted overall had playoff wins this year, and Stroud had one last year.

Until Caleb Williams steps up and plays more effectively to start games, he can't even be compared to Stroud and Daniels. They've gone against the best competition in postseason play and experienced success.

3. Ground Game's Importance

Four of the playoff games were won by the team with a lot more rushing yards than their opponent. In those four games, they outrushed the losing teams 846 yards to 265.

The lesson: Get Caleb Williams a real running game and everything become so much easier.

4. Draft Pass Rushers Early

Poles hasn't drafted a defensive end higher than the fifth round in three drafts.

Efective edge rushers make for dominant pass rushes. They also need pass rush help at tackle. How important is it to get heat on the opposing QB?

In every playoff game the losing team gave up more yards in sacks than the winning team. Winning teams had 22 sacks to 11 made by the losing teams.

Montez Sweat needs help, just like he needed going into last season when they didn't get it for him.

5. No Pedigree Necessary

You don't need to devote first-round picks to offensive linemen to build a functioning offensive line.

It definitely can help, but the Bills, Rams and Commanders don't have first-round picks among their starting offensive linemen and two have an undrafted free agent on the starting line.

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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.