Imrem: Maybe it's time for Broncos, Packers to squirm

The Chicago Bears were supposed to be in a precarious position with consecutive tests against St. Louis, Denver and Green Bay.

Well, the squirm turned Sunday afternoon when the Bears beat the Rams 37-13.

Now the Broncos and Packers might be the ones squirming.

"We're starting to know our football team better," Bears head coach John Fox said. "We've changed a lot over nine weeks."

Most of the change has been for the better.

Meanwhile, Green Bay has lost three straight games, the latest at home to otherwise hapless Detroit, and Denver has lost two straight, the latest at home to the otherwise uninspiring Chiefs.

A couple of weeks ago, the Packers and Broncos were undefeated and a scary back-to-back challenge the Bears would rather not face.

Now the Bears look more and more like a team the rest of the NFL would rather not face.

The Bears have won two straight games and four of six. Their 4-5 record means - gasp! - they actually can imagine being in playoff contention.

In the fourth quarter at St. Louis, smiles and laughter were spotted on the Bears' sideline. At one point Fox, offensive coordinator Adam Gase and quarterback Jay Cutler shared hearty chuckles.

Remember when cameras used to catch players on other teams laughing while drubbing the Bears?

The Rams aren't the NFL's greatest team, but they came in at 4-4, including victories over formidable division rivals Seattle and Arizona.

A defensive line stocked with first-round draft choices was supposed to overwhelm the Bears offensive line. Rookie phenom running back Todd Gurley was supposed to race past the Bears' defense.

Neither happened.

After the Rams' touchdown drive on the game's first possession, the Bears stifled their offense and shredded their defense.

Even more impressive was that two of the Bears' top players, running back Matt Forte and linebacker Pernell McPhee, were back home with injuries.

Those guys are highlight guys, but there were enough Bears' highlights anyway.

Who would have imagined that, considering the Bears weren't supposed to provide any memorable moments all season?

One highlight came on fourth-and-1, when too often in the past the Bears would have called for a line plunge.

This time Cutler went play-action to Jeremy Langford, who leaked out of the backfield to catch a screen pass for 11 yards.

Another noteworthy play came when the desperate Rams attempted a fake punt in the fourth quarter.

The Bears took away the primary receiver, forced the punter into an incomplete pass and looked like they knew what they were doing.

Perhaps the highlight of highlights came after Rams safety Mark Barron drew a penalty for driving the crown of his helmet into Cutler's chest.

The Bears' quarterback shook it off, caught his breath as well as possible and on the next play threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Zach Miller for a 17-10 lead that the Rams never overcame.

So, now, what about a possible playoff run?

"We don't even talk about it," Cutler said. "This team doesn't feel like it has arrived yet."

Just for the record these Bears aren't exactly the '85 Bears, '98 Bulls or '27 Yankees.

But they just might be a team that Denver and Green Bay will squirm about having to play the next couple of weeks.

mimrem@dailyherald.com