Bears given 9th-best NFC odds to make playoffs after cold streak

Given the Bears’ collapse in recent weeks, it would be surprising to see them bounce back and make their way into the playoffs.

The Bears have one of the worst offenses in football by essentially every metric, and their defense is coming off of a Green Bay game where they allowed their opponent to score 34 points on offense.

As a result of their dropping five straight, their postseason odds have taken a mighty tumble.

With average odds at +310, roughly a 24 percent chance, the Bears are currently ninth in the NFC in playoff odds for the 2020 season. Fellow 5-6 teams Minnesota and San Francisco have them beat with +208 and +223 odds, respectively, while the divisional rival Packers have the third-best odds in the NFC behind the Saints and Seahawks. It is worth noting that the NFC East is not being included by any sportsbook, likely due to the chaos and unpredictability of the division.

After their win over the Panthers on Oct. 18 that saw them improve to 5-1, the Bears reached their most favorable line with an average at -247 on Oct. 20, translating to roughly a 71 percent chance to appear in the postseason. They had the fifth-best odds to make it into the playoffs in the NFC, but their odds would soon drop from there.

Granted, the Bears have an opportune chance to come back from their five-game losing streak. Their next four opponents have a combined record of 14-30, and winning each of those games puts them right back at 9-6. While they may still have to beat the Packers in Week 17 in order to clinch a Wild Card berth, a 9-7 record could be enough to sneak them in as the seventh seed, depending on how the NFC West shapes out.

Plus, there is also the possibility the NFL could expand to an 8-team playoff if a significant number of games get cancelled. Though the league has fought to reschedule games and delay them rather than outright cancel them, it could remain a possibility with how rapidly COVID-19 is spreading throughout the league. Such an expansion would increase the Bears’ chances of crawling their way into the postseason.

However, it appears unlikely at this point that the Bears will make it into the playoffs. Not only do they face stiff Wild Card competition from teams like the Buccaneers, Rams and Cardinals, but their recent struggles in nearly every aspect of their organization may have already dug them a hole too deep to get out of.