The Chicago Bears lead the NFC behind their fearless — or rather shirtless — leader, Ben Johnson.
A month ago, the question seemed to be: Are the Bears for real? Now the talk is about the playoffs and where they stand in the conference pecking order. A lot of football is left, but the Bears have positioned themselves well heading into the home stretch.
The Tribune’s Brad Biggs, Sean Hammond and Phil Thompson tackle this week’s pressing questions as the calendar turns from November to December and the stakes get higher.
1. At 9-3, the Bears currently hold the No. 1 seed in the NFC, but a lot can change in five weeks. In your eyes, who is the best team in the NFC?
Biggs: What the Bears have done is impressive, and they appear to be gaining momentum as they continue to show improvement. I’ll pick the Rams, though, even though they laid an egg Sunday at Carolina. They have a quarterback with Super Bowl pedigree in Matthew Stafford and have beaten the Texans, Colts, Ravens, Jaguars, 49ers, Seahawks and Buccaneers. That’s a pretty good list of legitimate teams, and the Rams are well-constructed. It would be an interesting playoff matchup, the kind where home-field advantage could be a big deal.
Hammond: This is a crazy difficult question to answer right now. The Bears and Rams are the top teams as it stands, but the Packers or Seahawks just as easily could win those divisions. If I had to pick a team to win the NFC right now, I’d go with the quarterback playing at the highest level, with bonus points for a QB who has proved he can do it in the postseason. That leads me back to Stafford and the Rams.
Thompson: I still say it’s the Rams, who have the NFC’s best strength of victory (.523). Consider it the definitive “Who have you beat?” stat. The Rams edge the Eagles (.515) in that category, one of the conference tiebreakers, while the Bears check in at .344. One hiccup against the Panthers doesn’t erase the narrative. The Rams remain No. 2 in the league in average point differential (10.3), and Stafford tops the leaderboard in touchdown passes (32) while ranking second in passer rating (111.8) to the Patriots’ Drake Maye (111.9).
2. The Bears and Packers square off twice in three weeks. Which team is likelier to win the NFC North?
Biggs: Boy, that’s a tough one. The Packers have been hit by some key injuries, the most recent to defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, but they’ve started to click again on offense the last three weeks, something that took some time after tight end Tucker Kraft was lost for the season. The Bears have a half-game lead, so I will pick them. Green Bay has a tough one next week with a trip to Denver.
Hammond: If we’re going by recent history, of course the answer is Green Bay. But this Bears team is bucking all recent trends. Both teams have similarly tough remaining schedules. I think they will split their upcoming matchups. The Bears are on a roll and their running game will serve them well in December weather conditions. I’m taking the Bears.
Thompson: You hate to say it, but the Packers. They don’t have many obvious weaknesses, except you don’t know which version of quarterback Jordan Love you’ll get from week to week. However, “likelier” to win the North doesn’t mean it’s a fait accompli. The Bears have earned the benefit of the doubt that they can change their woeful track record against the Packers, who also have a tough stretch with matchups against the Broncos and Ravens on the schedule.
3. True or false: The Bears have the best offensive line in the NFL.
Bears offensive line coach Dan Roushar talks to players on the bench in the first quarter against the Vikings on Nov. 16, 2025, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Biggs: They’re in the running. I hate to cop out, but it’s impossible to make a definitive statement when you’re focused 90% of the time watching only one team. That the Bears are even in the conversation is one of the reasons for the team’s success. GM Ryan Poles, Ben Johnson and line coach Dan Roushar, among others, deserve credit for turning what had been a long-standing weakness into a strength.
Hammond: True. Who is better? The list of teams in contention is short. The Bills? Broncos? Colts? Rams? It has been impressive to watch this group come together over the past few months. The early results in the first month of the season were so-so. Since the bye week, the Bears have been elite. The combination of this line with Johnson scheming things up appears to be on par with the best of the best.
Thompson: False. It’s a hard call, especially since the Bears manhandled the Eagles defense, but you don’t want to fall into recency bias. According to Next Gen Stats, the Broncos have the lowest sack percentage (3.1%) and second-lowest quarterback pressure rate (26.6%). But according to ESPN’s analytics as of Tuesday, the Bears rank second in pass block win rate and fourth in run block win rate, while the Broncos rank fourth and seventh, respectively. The Bills, meanwhile, rank first and second, respectively, in pass block and run block win rate, albeit by fractions over the Bears, and they have the fifth-lowest run-stuff rate (13.3%) and QB pressure rate (28.6%). The fact they held the Steelers to no sacks and one QB hit despite missing both starting tackles is a testament to their unit. But the Bears are very close.
4. Fill in the blank: Nahshon Wright’s 2025 season has been _________?
Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright celebrates after he recovered a fumble during the third quarter against the Giants on Nov. 9, 2025, at Soldier Field. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
Biggs: A tremendous story. Secondary coach Al Harris worked with Wright previously in Dallas, but not even he could have predicted the volume of big plays the rangy cornerback has turned in. On a $1.1 million minimum contract, Wright has set himself up for a deserved payday in free agency. Whether it’s with the Bears remains to be seen.
Hammond: Unforeseen. This guy was a footnote in free agency. The production the Bears have gotten out of him has been nothing short of spectacular. His five interceptions are tied for second in the NFL, and his three fumble recoveries are the most among defenders. His strip on Jalen Hurts’ Tush Push was one of the more heads-up plays you’ll see. Wright is proving he can be a difference-maker in the league.
Thompson: Life-changing. Heading into Week 14, he ranks first in fumble recoveries (3), tied for second in interceptions (5) and tied for 13th in passes defended (10) with the Broncos’ Patrick Surtain II. Wright will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason at 27, and he’s set up to make a lot more than his current $1.1 million salary-cap number.
5. Caleb Williams completed less than 50% of his passes against the Eagles, and his season percentage is now 58.1%. How concerning are his accuracy issues?
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams passes against the Eagles in the second quarter Nov. 28, 2025, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Biggs: It’s a real concern, and Johnson has been pretty direct in discussing it. The game in Philadelphia wasn’t an anomaly. Williams has been below 60% for five consecutive weeks. Some folks twist themselves in knots trying to explain it, but the reality is he needs to become more accurate. It will, no doubt, be a major point of emphasis in the offseason. Simply put, it’s unusual for elite quarterbacks to hover in the low 60s in completion percentage, and Williams would have to go on a heater even to get there before year’s end.
Hammond: Long term, connecting on some of the easy throws is something Williams needs to work on. In the short term, though, I don’t know if it’s a huge concern. Williams has topped 60% just four times this season, and the Bears are 1-3 in those four games. They’re 8-0 when he’s below 60%. The Bears are working around it. At this point, you’re working with the QB you have. He’s not going to change his game dramatically over the next five weeks. This is something they’ll have to discuss more in the offseason.
Thompson: Very concerning. In isolation, you could give him a little bit of a pass for his 47.2% completion percentage in his first time facing a Vic Fangio defense — and the random gusts at Lincoln Financial Field. But Williams has fallen below 60% in eight of his last nine starts and below 55% in each of his last three, and we’ve been shocked by some off-target throws. “Above and beyond” shouldn’t apply to your ball location. At some point all the work he’s putting into his mechanics has to show up on the field.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/03/chicago-bears-pressing-questions-week-13/