Will the Bears win the NFC North, earn a Wild Card spot or miss the playoffs? Our team predictions

Will the Bears win the NFC North, earn a Wild Card spot or miss the playoffs? Our team predictions originally appeared in NBC Sports Chicago

It’s prediction time for the Podcast at the center. One week after the Bears and the rest of the NFL released the full schedule, the team broke down the team’s chances of winning the division or qualifying for the postseason as a Wild Card team.

Here is a transcript (lightly edited for clarity) of the conversation:

Will the Bears win the NFC North this year?

Alex Shapiro: I think this team could still be in third place in the NFC North.

Josh Schrock: If I were a gambler – I don’t gamble – I’d probably put it 50-1, 40-1.

I just think they have a year left. They’re talented, they’re young, but Detroit is better. Green Bay is better and Minnesota could be better. As if just for one year Minnesota could strike lightning in a bottle. Sam Darnold is suddenly good for a year. Brian Flores knows what he’s doing and all of a sudden they win 10 games. It’s like, wait, what the hell happened, right? So yes, it’s a long shot.

Shapiro: It’s not a question of talent. For me, it’s an established thing. The Bears just came out of the rebuild, right? They went through it all. They’ve put the pieces in place and are now ready to start competing. The other teams in the division have already done this.

The Packers somehow found a way not to rebuild. They just put Jordan Love in there, adjusted the defense and are fine. They really haven’t lost a step. Or at least not a big step, maybe half a step back. The Lions, as we all know, I mean, they’re clearly on the other side of this issue. They are two years ahead of the Bears.

Kenneth Davis: You still have a rookie quarterback. You have a guy who is now with new personnel in (offensive coordinator) Shane Waldron, trying to make this all cohesive behind that rookie quarterback. And we still have to see how robust the offensive line is in the middle. Because we think about the edges, they’re fine, but we have to see how robust they are in the middle.

Schrock: Look, if some breakdowns come their way, I’m not saying they can’t win the NFC North. Of course, crazier things have happened. There’s nothing that says injuries don’t happen here. One team got a little unlucky and suddenly the Bears are in first place on December 16th.

Will the Bears make the playoffs as a Wild Card team?

Schrock: I think the Bears’ goal should be: Monday night’s game against Minnesota, you should be in the middle of it. It should be like, ‘Hey, if we take care of business, we’ll get a Wild Card spot.’ You must play relevant and meaningful football in December. You have the talent to be a playoff contender, a Wild Card contender.

Shapiro: If Josh sets the odds at 50-1 for the Bears to win the division, it might even be money for them to make the playoffs. What do you think, fellow bettor Josh?

Schrock: You know, maybe +112.

Shapiro: So it’s certainly more likely, but I don’t know if I’m ready to call them favorites yet, just because we need to see that. I still see the Rams as a true Wild Card threat behind the 49ers. The Eagles and Dallas, whichever team doesn’t win the division, the other team will probably be there. And then the Packers. Therefore, the Bears will have to be better than one of these teams.

So every year there is a surprise team. The Arizona Cardinals, for example, with Marvin Harrison Jr. and Kyler Murray playing a full season, will this offense be successful? Will this be the big, great year for Kyler Murray that many people perhaps predicted when he was playing really well early in his career before getting injured? The Seahawks, there’s a chance they’re good. There will be good teams fighting for that Wild Card spot along with the Bears.

Schrock: They should be in the mix for those six, seven, eight seeds, for sure.

Later the guys fell apart Caleb Williams’ chances of breaking a big rookie record. They also shared their full game-by-game predictions for the regular season. To watch the full conversation on YouTube, Click hereor listen wherever you find your podcasts.

Click here to follow the Under Center Podcast.