And you thought it was bad to see an 82-80 baseball team make the playoffs...well, then, brace yourselves for an even worse playoff entrant. The Chicago Bears, at 5-3, have a two-game lead over the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions. Having swept the Lions, the Bears' lead over Detroit is effectively three games, when you factor in the tiebreaker. Though the Bears have a few tough games left (Carolina, Pittsburgh, Atlanta), they also get two against the hapless Packers, one more up in the Twin Cities, and the Niners at home this weekend. Yes, there's still half a season to play, but Chicago's in fantastic position to win the NFC North at 9-7.
If you haven't seen the Bears play this year, consider yourself lucky. The defense is pretty good, and has given up the second fewest points in the league (pending the Colts' effort tonight) - but it's not a great unit, as the Amazing Aaron Stecker proved yesterday. The offensive line is pretty good, too, and Thomas Jones has had a fabulous first half at tailback. But Kyle Orton, try as he might, shouldn't yet be starting in the NFL, and as a whole the team simply isn't up to playoff speed. Of the 12 other NFC teams (i.e. those not in the North), the Bears are better than the Niners, play about even with the Saints and Cardinals - and are clearly worse than the other nine squads. Yet this 10th-best team is setting itself up for a home playoff game with the #4 seed come January.
If that thought repulses you - as it well might - don't get on that Vikings bandwagon just yet, and that's not just because some reserve linebacker might try to stuff a few singles down your pants. The other teams in the Norris are just as crappy as the Bears. We're looking at the worst division in football in years.
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