No need for Bears to look ahead
Linebacker Willie Young said he was not going to get caught up in playoff talk, despite the Bears’ recent surge, which was highlighted by a victory over the Packers at Lambeau Field on Thanksgiving Day.
Let’s see now ... if the Bears win out and finish 10-6 and the Seahawks lose to the Vikings and Cardinals, or the Packers lose to the...
“I’m not going to get caught up in that,” linebacker Willie Young said Monday when asked about playoff talk and everything else that comes with a monumental upset of the Packers, “because the people who are patting us on the back now are the same people who were throwing us under the bus four or five weeks ago.
“We can’t be distracted by what goes on outside of here. The guys in this locker room know what’s going on. Other than that, it’s irrelevant.”
Yeah, but the playoffs sure seem like a more relevant topic now than a week ago. Right, Willie?
“Hell no, that’s not the case,” Young said. “We’ve got to play San Fran [on Sunday at Soldier Field]. San Fran just held their own against Arizona [losing 19-13]. We can’t get caught up in that.
“We beat a good team. But I know that has nothing to do with this week. Nor does it have anything to do with the following week or the next week or the next week after that. Just because we beat Green Bay doesn’t mean we got over [the hump].”
No, it doesn’t. But it does alter the landscape a bit. After beating the Packers fair-and-square — with Aaron Rodgers playing from start to finish — at Lambeau Field on Thanksgiving night, the Bears suddenly have the wind at their backs: Since their 0-3 start, the Bears are 5-6, with the only losses by three points in overtime to the Lions, three points to the Vikings and two points to the Broncos. In five games since the bye week, Vic Fangio’s defense has allowed an average of 14.4 points — third best in the NFL in that span.
Now they have to prepare for the 49ers (3-8), a team that Fangio is well acquainted with. The 49ers are winless (0-5) on the road and have been outscored 276-71. Following the 49ers are other beatable opponents: the Redskins (5-6) at home; the Buccaneers (5-6) on the road; and the Lions (4-7) at home.
The Bears, a developing team all season under coach John Fox are at the point where they believe they can be somebody, but can’t let that much confidence show. Their challenge after beating the Packers is to keep their feet on the ground and their focus squarely on the next game. Not the playoffs. And in actuality, even at 10-6, the Bears would need help to push either the Packers (7-4) or the Seahawks (6-5) out of the final wild-card spot in the NFC.
“I don’t think we have the room to think [playoffs] right now. We’re still 5-6,” cornerback Tracy Porter said. “We don’t want to look too far down the road, because then we can overlook an opponent and that’s how you get beat by an inferior team.”