The NFL season is almost upon us. We go over every Chicago Bears game in 2020 and come up with a final record for the season.
The NFL season is finally here! Some people never thought the 2020 season would start but here we are. The season starts this week. The Chicago Bears start the season on the road, hoping to give head coach Matt Nagy his first Week 1 victory. It helps that he isn’t preparing for the Green Bay Packers, the Bears’ last two Week 1 opponent.
The Bears are hoping to improve upon their disappointing 8-8 record last season. They had high hopes for the season after they earned a 12-4 record and the NFC North title in 2018.
The offense struggled mightily in 2019, ranking 29th in both yards gained and points scored. Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky struggled to lead the offense. He made the same mistakes that have marred his career — taking too long to make a decision and compounding it by making a bad decision. Some wondered if he’d even be the starter in 2020 but he still has his job.
Trubisky had to work to keep the job, however. He battled former Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles, and while he won the battle, it’ll be more difficult to keep that job. We’ll see what the battle accomplished. Is Trubisky better because of it?
Without further delay, here is a game-by-game prediction for all of the Chicago Bears’ 16 regular-season games in 2020.
Week 1: At Detroit Lions
The Bears open the season on the road against the Lions. This is a good team for Trubisky to play. He plays well against Detroit and holds a three-game winning streak against them. That continues this week. The Lions have a weak secondary and Trubisky exploits that. He throws for over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns. Bears 31-14
Week 2: New York Giants
The Bears play their home opener in Week 2, albeit without fans. They take on the Giants who, like the Bears, are trying to get back to relevancy. Again, Chicago plays against a weak secondary. The Giants will apparently use a “cornerback by committee” scenario which means they’ll go with whoever does a decent job until he struggles. Additionally, safety Xavier McKinney may be out the entire season with a broken bone in his foot. Bears 23-13
Week 3: At Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons finished the 2019 season strong, winning their last four games. If running back Todd Gurley shows he still has something left in his arthritic knees he provides some protection for quarterback Matt Ryan. The middle of the Bears’ line could be tested early. How does the absence of Eddie Goldman affect the run defense? Falcons 23-10
Week 4: Indianapolis Colts
The Colts were a couple of field goal misses from making the playoffs (see, the Bears aren’t the only team dealing with kicking woes). They brought in Philip Rivers to get back into the playoffs. Rivers had a bad season in 2019, but he dealt with a porous offensive line. He has Indy’s excellent line protecting him now. The Colts boast a very good running game as well.
The defense started out great early on but wore down late in the season. The Colts added Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and overhauled their secondary. This is now a real playoff contender. Colts 23-9
Week 5: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bears play the first of their four games in the primetime spotlight on Thursday Night Football. They face the new-look Bucs with Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, and Leonard Fournette. Brady now has a stacked wide receivers unit so he gets to show critics that he still has something left in the tank. The Bears lose their third straight game and the fans grumble for a change at quarterback. Bucs 24-10
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Week 6: At Carolina Panthers
The Panthers don’t have a team anyone would consider a winning one. They have a new coach and they moved on from Cam Newton. They now have Teddy Bridgewater at the helm leading a young football team. He won’t have the cast he had with the New Orleans Saints last season. The Panthers will be happy if they end up with more wins than the five they had in 2019. Bears 23-10
Week 7: At Los Angeles Rams
The Bears’ second primetime game is on Monday Night Football. Trubisky has his struggles and one of his biggest struggles is playing against the Rams. He has a 1-1 record, but the defense was mainly responsible for that win. In two career games against Los Angeles, he’s thrown four interceptions, completed 54.79 percent of his passes, and averages just 4.11 yards per pass attempt. His struggles continue in this game and it could be his last game as the starter. Rams 17-9
Week 8: New Orleans Saints
The Saints thoroughly embarrassed the Bears in their matchup last season. The 36-25 score wasn’t indicative of how bad the Bears looked because they scored two touchdowns late in the game after it was long lost.
Nagy decides to pull Trubisky and goes with Foles. The Saints might not be as good offensively as quarterback Drew Brees is heading into the end of his career.
Foles steps in and does a great job (again). He completes a bunch of short passes that allow receivers to gain more yards and sprinkles in some deep passes. It’s nice to see a Bears quarterback complete deep passes. Bears 32-20
Week 9: At Tennessee Titans
Quarterback Ryan Tannehill doesn’t have the same magic he did in 2019. He isn’t the same quarterback as the one who started with the Miami Dolphins but he also isn’t the same super player he was last season. Foles again commands the offense and makes good decisions. Bears 23-13
Week 10: Minnesota Vikings
The Bears play this game on Monday Night Football. For some reason, Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins has a difficult time in primetime games. He owns a record of 7-15 in total primetime games and 0-9 on Monday Night Football. In this game, two of the toughest defenses in the league battle it out. The Bears defense comes out on top in a close, exciting game. Bears 16-10
Week 12: At Green Bay Packers
After their bye week, the Bears travel to Lambeau Field where they try to exorcise their demons there. They’ve lost four consecutive games on that field, some of them in heartbreaking fashion. Unfortunately, the curse continues in this Sunday Night Football matchup as the Packers score late and hold on for the win. Packers 13-10
Week 13: Detroit Lions
Nagy is just a better coach than Matt Patricia. The Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions have had some close games the past two seasons with both coaches at the helm. The Bears continually come out on top. For the third straight season, Chicago completes a season sweep. Bears 24-13
Week 14: Houston Texans
Ryan Pace’s decision to draft Trubisky over Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes continues to haunt him In 2019, the Bears faced Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs and he dominated them.
This season, the Bears face Watson and the Texans. This won’t be the blowout that Mahomes directed last year, but Watson comes out on top as well. What makes it worse for Pace is Trubisky watches it from the bench. Texans 23-17
Week 15: At Minnesota Vikings
The Bears travel to Minnesota to face the Vikings. At this point in the season, the Bears, Vikings, and Packers are still competing for the NFC North title. The Vikings take control with a win over Chicago. Vikings 17-13
Week 16: At Jacksonville Jaguars
With the loss to the Vikings, the Bears’ hope for the playoffs now rests on clinching a Wild Card berth. Playing the Jaguars certainly helps. Finally, a game in which the Chicago Bears quarterback exacts some revenge.
Jacksonville shipped Foles to Chicago after he spent an injury-riddled season there. He comes back to Florida to show them what they missed. He has his best game of the season. Bears 34-9
Week 17: Green Bay Packers
The Bears’ playoff hopes rest on this game. Bears win and they clinch the final playoff spot in the new extended playoff format. Also, if they win this game they prevent the Packers from winning the division…again. The Bears accomplish their goals on both counts. Bears 27-13
There you have it. The Chicago Bears finish the season 9-7, third in the NFC North. With an additional team qualifying for the playoffs, they get in. Furthermore, with Foles’ good play in important games and the Bears’ elite defense, don’t be surprised if they win a playoff game or even two.
