Second half will test Bears
Lovie Smith is absolutely right when he says that at 5-3 the Bears are in great position to make a playoff run.
In the NFC, only the Atlanta Falcons and the New York Giants at 6-2 have fewer losses than the Bears, one of five teams with 3 losses.
So, yes, the Bears are in the thick of the playoff race at the halfway point.
But they'll have to play much better football in the second half of the season if they hope to duplicate their 5-3 mark because starting Sunday the competition gets a lot tougher.
The Bears have built their record by playing arguably the easiest schedule in the NFL.
Record-wise, the three worst teams in the NFL are the Buffalo Bills (0-8), the Dallas Cowboys (1-7) and the Carolina Panthers (1-7).
Guess which is the only team that already has played all three? You got it, Da Bears.
Even by the end of the season, no other team will have had the good fortune to play all three of those teams, who have a combined record of 2-22 so far.
However the Saints play Carolina twice and the Cowboys once, and the Giants play the Cowboys twice and the Panthers once.
But the Bears were lucky enough to get all three of the NFL's worst teams in the first eight games.
They managed to defeat all three, plus the Detroit Lions (2-6), whom they face again on Dec. 5. So, of the Bears' 5 victories, 4 have been against teams with a combined record of 4-28.
Their only victory worth bragging about is the 20-17 decision over the Green Bay Packers (6-3) on Sept. 27.
Maybe that's why it seems there isn't quite the level of excitement around town that a 5-3 team normally would generate, and even Smith has noticed it.
“We're 5-3 right now,” he said, “and a lot of times it seems like we're 2-6 or something like that.”
Not even the Las Vegas oddsmakers respect the Bears. They have installed the visiting Minnesota Vikings, who are 3-5, as 1-point favorites at Soldier Field. That's harsh.
But the Bears won't get the respect they believe they deserve until they prove they can continue to play winning football now that the cupcake portion of their schedule has concluded.
With the possible exception of that rematch with the Lions who are vastly improved but will be without talented, young quarterback Matthew Stafford the Bears don't play any more powder puffs.
It starts Sunday with the Vikings.
The team that five years ago was defined by the “The Love Boat” incident, is now more closely associated with “Mutiny on the Bounty.”
But despite the drama swirling around the Vikings and speculation on head coach Brad Childress' job security and his hold on the players, the Vikings rose from the dead in the final five minutes Sunday to steal a 27-24 overtime victory over Arizona.
The Vikings know they probably need to sweep their two remaining games with the Bears to get back in the playoff picture.
The other five remaining games for the Bears are against teams that are .500 or better. They're at Miami against the Dolphins (4-4) and at Green Bay (6-3). At home they face the Philadelphia Eagles (5-3), the New England Patriots (6-2) and the New York Jets (6-2).
That slate will determine if the Bears' 5-3 record is a true barometer of their talent or a scheduling gift.
“I like our position,” Smith said. “November is when that playoff run begins, and we're in pretty good shape. We just want to matter, and I think right now you can say that the Bears really matter about what is going on in our division.”
For now, they do matter, but Smith and the Bears have a tough second half to navigate if they want to remain relevant.
ŸFollow Bob LeGere's Bears reports via Twitter@BobLeGere. Check out his blog, Bear Essentials, at DailyHerald.com.