Kyle Long unveils Chicago Bears division title t-shirt

This is another bad season for the Chicago Bears, but there is some success they can hang their hat on.

Regardless of Sunday’s result against the Minnesota Vikings, the Chicago Bears will have double-digit losses for the fourth straight year. The last three of those have come under John Fox, with a 13-33 record (entering this week) that makes it foregone conclusion he’ll be fired.

The Bears have five wins through 15 games this season, with a few upset wins to their credit but just one win within the NFC. The other four marks in the win column have of course then come against AFC teams, with a particular “dominance” over one division.

Week 3, Sept. 24: Bears 23, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
Week 6, Oct. 15: Bears 27, Baltimore Ravens 24
Week 14, Dec. 10: Bears 33, Cincinnati Bengals 7
Week 16, Dec. 24, Bears 20, Cleveland Browns 3

Yep, the Bears are 4-0 against the AFC North this year, with wins over the playoff-bound Steelers and the in line to be playoff-bound Ravens.

Chicago has earned a division title of sorts, and it has been commemorated via offensive lineman Kyle Long.

The Bears’ only other win this season came against yet another playoff team, 17-3 over the Carolina Panthers in Week 7. With a loss to the Vikings, they will finish eight games out of the division lead in the NFC North.

The Panthers are another team that went undefeated within another division, going 4-0 against the AFC East, and the Los Angeles Rams also went 4-0 against the AFC South this year. So the Bears are the only team to go unbeaten against another division, but have no chance to win their own division. The Rams have clinched the NFC West, and the Panthers can clinch the NFC South on Sunday with a win over the Atlanta Falcons and a loss by the New Orleans Saints.

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Based on this year’s results, the Bears would surely like to play the AFC North again soon. But they’ll have to wait until 2021, which could be two head coaches away.