Bears Overpower Eagles, Hold Down 1st Place In NFC North

The NFC North has taken shape this season and the division appears to belong to the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. With five games to go in the regular season, the Bears have served notice on the division and the rest of the NFC that they have a formidable team.

They walked into Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia and delivered a 24-15 beat down of the defending Super Bowl champions. Prior to Chicago’s victory on Black Friday, the Bears had been about coming through with winning plays against Bengals, Giants and Vikings in the final moments of the game.

They struggled to beat all of those losing teams, so there was no reason to think they could win any game in dominant fashion, let alone against the Eagles on their homefield. Yet, that’s just what happened as the Bears unleashed a powerful ground game that saw them run for 281 yards against a defense that ranked eighth in the NFL in points allowed per game.

The performance was historic as rookie Kyle Monangai rushed for 130 yards and a touchdown and veteran D’Andre Swift added 125 yards and a TD. The last time the Bears had two running backs exceed 100 yards rushing in a game was during the team’s legendary and Super Bowl-winning season of 1985. The two backs were Walter Payton and Matt Suhey.

The Bears were so powerful against the Eagles that head coach Ben Johnson was out of control in the locker room after the game. He led the team’s celebration by ripping off his shirt and flexing like a teenager trying to impress the most beautiful girl in town. His players roared their approval as if they had earned a spot in the Super Bowl.

The Bears have a ways to go before that happens, and they must contend with their greatest rival before such an idea is realistic. The 9-3 Bears are one-half game ahead of the 8-3-1 Green Bay Packers, and the two teams will meet twice in the next three weeks, including at Lambeau Field in Week 14.

Presumably, the Bears will need a huge performance from second-year quarterback Caleb Williams in those games. He is one of the most improved signal callers in the league, but he is not an MVP candidate. Williams has all the tools and Johnson has helped refine his game, but he still lacks accuracy at times. That aspect of his game needs to improve.

The Packers have owned the Bears for more than three decades as quarterbacks Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love have had their way with the Monsters of the Midway. However, the Packers will not take the Bears lightly at this point.

The Bears are in first place and they defeated the Eagles. The Eagles beat the Packers, so Chicago’s achievement means that Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur will have to prepare for the Bears as if they are the repeat of Mike Ditka’s 1985 championship team.

Lions have fallen into shocking slump

Whether the Packers or the Bears turn out to be the division kingpins, the Detroit Lions (7-5) have been supplanted. The Packers’ Thanksgiving Day victory over the Lions was their second triumph over Dan Campbell’s team this season.

Instead of overpowering opponents with a relentless offense, the Lions have become a caricature of themselves. Campbell goes for it on nearly every fourth-down play and his lack of refinement and his inability to back down has hurt the team badly. Additionally, the loss of Johnson as offensive coordinator and Aaron Glenn as defensive coordinator have drained both units.

Amon-Ra St. Brown suffered a sprained ankle in the Thanksgiving Day loss to the Packers and he is going to miss time when the Lions face the Cowboys and the Rams the next two weeks. The Lions are going in the wrong direction and Campbell does not know how to turn them back around.

Meanwhile, the Vikings (4-7) are in last place and they appear destined to stay there. J.J. McCarthy is out with a concussion as his team prepares to play against the Seattle Seahawks with undrafted rookie free agent Max Brosmer under center. The Vikings will face Sam Darnold, the quarterback who led them to a 14-3 record last year. He is likely to attack his former team with Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the receiver who has replaced Justin Jefferson as the NFL’s best this year.

The Bears have climbed the ladder dramatically and the Packers are right on their heels. The Lions have slipped precipitously and the Vikings have fallen into a deep hole. The NFC North has changed dramatically and last year’s bottom feeder may turn out to be this year’s champion.