The Chicago Bears will hit the road this weekend to take on the Baltimore Ravens, who may be the most surprising disappointing team in the early stages of the 2025 season.

The Ravens have been a powerhouse in the AFC over the past few seasons, with Super Bowl aspirations this year, but have fallen to a 1-5 record. Meanwhile, former MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson has missed the last two games due to a hamstring injury.

Chicago comes into their Week 8 matchup riding a four-game winning streak and looking to avoid a repeat of bad history last year, when they also started 4-2 but then endured a 10-game losing streak. It’d also be a big notch on their belt this season to defeat an AFC powerhouse, despite the struggles that the Ravens have gone through this year.

Here are the top three reasons for concern as the Bears face the Ravens this Sunday:

Derrick Henry

Ravens running back Derrick Henry is having a downright disappointing season this year, including fumbling in three straight games. This season, Henry has rushed for 439 yards and scored four touchdowns, while averaging 5.0 yards per carry, but Baltimore has not had him as involved as they normally would in their offensive plans. Henry is facing a Bears defense that was atrocious in their rush defense early this season but have turned it around over their last two victories after their bye week. Henry has a point to prove for the rest of the year, and if the Bears defense is not prepared, this could be a get-right opportunity for the former NFL rushing king.

Lamar Jackson’s potential return

With his team down on the season and having missed their last two games, there is certainly no overlooking the eagerness of Lamar Jackson’s desire to return to the field. The ultra-elusive dual-threat quarterback has a skillset that could absolutely destroy the Bears defense, especially their pass rushing unit that have struggled to get quarterback sacks. Jackson is also looking to save his team’s season, which is going to be a lot easier said than done as the Ravens defense has been their weakest part of their entire team. Jackson’s MVP ability could severely change the tempo of this game, and the Bears defense will have their work cut out for them. Jackson is officially questionable for Sunday.

Self-inflicted wounds

Although Chicago’s defense has been remarkable during their four-game winning streak, and throughout the beginning of the season, there are still things that need to get cleaned up on both sides of the football. The biggest issue is penalties. In the last two games, the Bears have 19 combined penalties, most of which have been momentum killers. Chicago’s offense has not put up the numbers they’ve been in position to score, as they’ve had to settle for either field goals instead of touchdowns, or taken themselves out of scoring range because of penalties they’ve committed. The Bears can become a team taken very serious if they can continue to grow and develop, and a big part of that will be playing clean football without committing penalties.

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