The Chicago Bears did the deed. They defeated the Green Bay Packers in their second attempt, which puts a stranglehold on the NFC North. Both the first and second seeds are in play for them as well, creating great vibes around the team.
There are still plenty of doubters, but they now have a handful of really respectable wins on their resume. The Cleveland Browns are not a good team, but their defense is borderline elite, and the Bears scored 30 points against them. The Washington Commanders won’t be considered a see-quality win because of how their season went, but it was a huge deal to beat them at the time. Of course, the Philadelphia Eagles and Packers’ wins stick out above the rest.
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In our weekly power rankings, the Bears came in at No. 5 again. The Packers fell way below them, and Chicago is a top-five team once again. What they’ve done this year, although it wasn’t pretty, is win with consistency. Here’s a look at where the Bears land among various power rankings:
USA Today
Current Ranking: 9
Last Week’s Ranking: 10
Author: Nate Davis
Author’s Take: “The season has been an unqualified success for the presumptive NFC North champions. But getting blown out at Soldier Field in the playoffs seems as likely − perhaps more so − as a Super Bowl run for a team that’s constantly on a high wire.”
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Our Take: That’s the most common take by writers this year. The Bears are good, but nobody is confident that they are elite. They keep winning, against good opponents, but they aren’t winning the right way, according to a lot of critics. They should learn how to win better.
The Athletic
Current Ranking: 8
Last Week’s Ranking: 10
Author: Josh Kendall
Author’s Take: “Caleb Williams’ game-winning pass to DJ Moore was incredible. Ben Johnson’s postgame speeches in the locker room are becoming must-watch. But at some point, will the magic run out if Williams waits until the fourth quarter to don his cape? And while the defense ranks 28th in yards per play allowed?”
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Our Take: It feels like The Athletic’s theme for the week was targeting the Bears specifically. They went through and gave one concern for each team. Despite being 11-4 and holding the second seed in the NFC, the Bears have a lot of concerns surrounding them. It’s all magic for the Bears and nothing to do with Ben Johnson’s coaching or the players executing when the game is on the line.
ESPN
Current Ranking: 8
Last Week’s Ranking: 10
Author: Courtney Cronin
Author’s Take: “The No. 11 pick introduced himself to the NFL in Chicago’s wild comeback win over Cincinnati in Week 9 with a 118-yard, two-touchdown performance that included the 58-yard winner. Since then, he has gotten no fewer than four targets a game from quarterback Caleb Williams. The Bears utilize 12 personnel (two tight ends) at one of the highest rates in the league, and that’s reflected in Loveland’s 57.8% snap count for the season (fourth highest among the team’s skill players). He creates every bit of a mismatch nightmare that Chicago expected when it selected him. And Loveland’s willingness as a blocker is critically important to the NFL’s No. 2 rushing offense.”
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Our Take: ESPN went through every team and wrote about the rookie of the year on each team. For the Bears, Courtney Cronin highlighted Colston Loveland, who has been incredible in Chicago’s offense. This is especially true for the second half of the season, where Caleb Williams has used Loveland a lot as a matchup advantage.
NFL.com
Current Ranking: 6
Last Week’s Ranking: 6
Author: Eric Edholm
Author’s Take: “With Saturday night’s thrilling OT victory over rival Green Bay, Chicago now has 11 wins — with six of them coming after the Bears trailed in the final two minutes of regulation. They needed a face-mask penalty on third-and-20 and a recovered onside kick, among other things, in order to pull out that miracle against the Packers, which demonstrates both their extraordinary resilience and their propensity to make things harder than they need to be. The reward for those late-game heroics is that the Bears have clinched a playoff spot, they are the overwhelming favorites to win the NFC North, and the No. 1 seed remains possible. Simply beating the 49ers and Lions might not get it done, however, and as Ben Johnson said in the locker room after Saturday’s win: “We need to get better.” If the Bears do, Chicago might not know what to do with itself.”
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Our Take: The Bears did what they needed to do to beat the Green Bay Packers on a cold Saturday night in Chicago. Recovering an onside kick in a league that doesn’t see that happen very often is apparently not good enough. In all honesty, the Bears should be proud of what they’ve accomplished because in year one of a rookie head coach, they are going to the playoffs.
NBC Sports (PFT)
Current Ranking: 7
Last Week’s Ranking: 7
Author: Mike Florio
Author’s Take: “It’s the most interesting Bears team since ’85.”
Our Take: The Bears are a very interesting team in 2025, but it’s hardly the most interesting since 1985. For one, the 1986 Bears were incredibly polarizing. The 2006 Bears made it to the Super Bowl with a subpar offense because their defense was so strong, and the 2018 defense was the second-best in franchise history. This team is in the conversation, but not definitively more interesting.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears power rankings roundup: Where Chicago lands in Week 17