FOX WON’T SAY IF CB FULLER IS READY TO PLAY
10 QUESTIONS Game in Week 13 matches teams with hangdog records
The Bears practiced inside Friday after spending the previous two days outdoors preparing for what might be the first snow of the season.
“We’re not like filming an episode of ‘‘ Vikings,’’ or something where we’ve got snow blowing,” coach John Fox said. “We’re not quite to that point yet.”
While we wonder what other History Channel shows he watches, here are 10 more questions as the Bears prepare for the 49ers:
1. So how bad is Sunday’s game?
This millennium, there have only been two worse Week 13 pairings than the 49ers and Bears, who have three combined victories.
In 2007, the 0- 11 Dolphins played the 2- 9 Jets. In 2001, the 1- 10 Bills faced the 1- 11 Panthers.
This game will be the first Week 13 matchup in the 2000s between teams with three combined victories. There have been only four between teams with four wins.
2. Yuck, right?
Three NFC stats:
The 1- 10 49ers and 2- 9 Bears have a combined winning percentage of .136. The rest of the conference: .555.
The Bears and 49ers have been outscored by 202 points on aggregate. The four other NFC teams to be outscored on the season have a combined margin of minus- 101 points— half the total.
The 49ers ( 10) and Bears ( three) have the two longest active losing streaks in the NFC.
3. Wow, could you be more depressing?
The Bears started the season with five players who were once first- round draft picks: receiver Kevin White, guard Kyle Long, cornerback Kyle Fuller, outside linebacker Leonard Floyd and quarterback Jay Cutler.
Those five never played together; four — all but Fuller — played in the same game twice, in Weeks 1 and 2.
None played Sunday.
4. OK. Cheer up. Maybe they went to DisneyWorld?
After playing in Miami, the 49ers stayed in Florida to train in Orlando this week. Coach Chip Kelly’s team practiced all week on campus at the University of Central Florida. The Knights’ coach, Scott Frost, was once Kelly’s wide receivers coach at Oregon.
The high Friday was 74 degrees; Soldier Field on Sunday should be about half that.
5. Whogoofed?
Fox said he made a mistake when he took a timeout with 2: 06 to play after the Titans completed a third- down shovel pass. He should have let the clock tick down to the two- minute warning and saved the timeout.
“The review of it was, ‘ Pretty dumb,’ ” Fox said. “If we had to do it over again we would have saved it for inside the two- minute warning. As it worked out, it really became pointless. But yeah, that was one of my mistakes.”
6. Whose shoes?
Jordan Howard will wear blue and yellow Adidas cleats to support the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation. The running back’s father, Reginald, died of pulmonary fibrosis when Jordan was 12.
“He always motivates me, and this is all we ever talked about,” he said.
Players can wear customized cleats as part of the “My Cause, My Cleats” campaign, designed to bring attention to charitable causes.
Three other Bears will wear custom shoes. Notably, outside linebacker Sam Acho will support Living Hope Christian Ministries, a charity his parents founded in 1989 that returns to Nigeria each year to provide medical care.
7. Whose idea?
Give Brandon Marshall some credit. The former Bears receiver was fined $ 10,500 in 2013 for wearing lime green cleats in a Thursday night win against the Giants to support mental- health awareness. That spurred a conversation with commissioner Roger Goodell.
8. Wanna bet?
The 49ers, one- point underdogs, have covered the spread once in their last 10 games.
9. Whydid the Bears’ onside kick work?
For one reason, it went to the left — uncommon for a rightfooted kicker. Connor Barth first showed special- teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers the dribbler when he kicked for him in Denver.
“For the most part, right- footed guys go right, left- footed guys go left, or the middle,” Rodgers said. “We had shown the middle one so we practiced that one and it worked out.”
10. Is that ’ Phee?
As part of its “From State to Sundays” marketing campaign, Mississippi State bought five digital billboards around the city to promote alum Pernell McPhee. The billboard features the outside linebacker in a Mississippi State helmet and Bears jersey, and says “Wherever you go, we’ll go with you.”
The locations: West Hubbard Street at North State Street; Grand Avenue at LaSalle Street; West Randolph Street at North Jefferson Street; Milwaukee Avenue at Chicago Avenue; and North Avenue at Elston Avenue.