Thursday night's showdown between the Dallas Cowboys (6-6) and Bears (6-6) will have a playoff-like feel to it, as both teams are jockeying for a postseason berth. The Cowboys need to keep winning in order to maintain their lead over the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East, while the Bears have to win-out (and get some help) to stay alive over the final four weeks.
If the experts are right about their predictions this week, GM Ryan Pace and the rest of the Bears organization will turn their attention to the 2020 offseason on Friday morning.
According to NFL Pick Watch, 68 percent of experts polled are taking the Cowboys to win the game. It's isn't all that shocking considering quarterback Dak Prescott is in the MVP conversation and running back Ezekiel Elliott is a perennial threat to win the NFL rushing title.
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The Bears are a three-point home underdog, too. Whether it's football media picking against them or the oddsmakers in Vegas assuming they'll lose by at least six points (remember, the home team usually gets a three-point edge), Chicago is the quintessential underdog Thursday night.
And isn't that exactly where this Bears team should be? Let's face it, they put themselves in this position. Losses to the Eagles, Chargers and Raiders earlier in the season are just as embarrassing now as they were then, and had the Bears managed to win even one of those matchups against likely non-playoff teams, the road to the postseason wouldn't be nearly as daunting.
Instead, the Bears must win-out, and it starts Thursday night in a game most analysts think they'll lose.
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