The Chicago Bears fans' guide to the 2024-25 NFL playoffs

Fourteen teams still have a shot at hoisting the Lombardi Trophy next month, and 12 of them will be in action in the coming days. The Chicago Bears, sadly, are not one of them thanks to their wildly disappointing 5-12 season, meaning for the fourth year in a row, Bears fans will not have a direct rooting interest in the postseason.

Most Bears fans are already looking forward to the team hiring a new head coach, signing new free agents, and picking in the top 10 of the NFL Draft, but there are plenty of reasons not to tune the playoffs out.

There's a Bears tie-in everywhere you look in these playoffs, so what we're doing today is taking a closer look at the things Bears fans should care about, from players and coaches to watch to teams to root for, whether for altruistic or ulterior reasons. Let's go one by one through each team to find out what Bears fans should be caring about, beginning in the AFC.

Bears fans' AFC rooting guide

(1) Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs are seeking their third Super Bowl in a row, a feat that no team has ever accomplished before. Their offensive coordinator is Matt Nagy, the former head coach of the Bears that presided over the infamous "Double Doink." Nagy's success immediately after leaving Chicago, fairly or not, annoys Bears fans. Additionally, winning it all again would give the Chiefs a strong argument to be called the greatest team of all-time. Many people believe that honor belongs right now to the '85 Bears, and even though it's not quite apples to apples to compare one extraordinary season to a three-year run, Bears fans have a vested interest in seeing the Chiefs finally go down.

(2) Buffalo Bills

The Bills have a lot that Bears fans could get on board with. Both teams have intensely loyal fanbases, and both have been subjected to more than their share of heartbreak over the years. The Bills also have Mitch Trubisky as their backup quarterback, and though Mitch never lived up to what Bears fans hoped he would be after he was drafted with the No. 2 overall pick, Bears fans still have a soft spot for him. If the Bills could finally win a Super Bowl, it would give Bears fans hope that one day, they could also reach the mountaintop.

(3) Baltimore Ravens

The Bears traded middle linebacker Roquan Smith to the Ravens in 2022, and have now had to watch him make First Team All-Pro three years running. This Ravens team, with Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry leading the way, is known for its offense, but every pass broken up and tackle made by Smith reminds Bears fans of the one that got away. Seeing him win a Super Bowl would only increase the fanbase's hostility towards a front office that already has its feet to the fire.

(4) Houston Texans

There isn't much in the way of former Bears on the Houston roster or staff, but Bears fans still think of the Texans fondly for the way former coach Lovie Smith led them to an improbable win in the final game of the 2022-23 season, which gifted the Bears the No. 1 overall pick that they then traded to the Carolina Panthers. This is the deal that ultimately brought Caleb Williams to Chicago, and it wouldn't have been possible without the Texans. To express their thanks, Bears fans should be rooting for the Texans to have a good showing.

(5) Pittsburgh Steelers

Bears fans and Steelers fans have always shared a certain kinship, both for the blue-collar cities their teams represent and for the hard-nosed brand of football that their teams have traditionally played. Bears fans have watched the Steelers with extra interest since former Bears starting quarterback Justin Fields was traded to Pittsburgh in March, but it feels like his new team did him dirty by replacing him with Russell Wilson. As long as Russ is the starter, Bears fans should be rooting against the Men of Steel, but if Justin somehow gets another chance, Bears fans will be waving their Terrible Towels.

(6) Los Angeles Chargers

Though the trade for Khalil Mack didn't help the Bears get to a Super Bowl, there's no denying that he was an outstanding player in Chicago. Now he's with the Chargers, and most Bears fans wouldn't mind seeing him taste some success at this advanced stage of his career. There's just one problem though, and it's a big one. Former Bears quarterback Jim Harbaugh is in his first year back in the NFL, and instead of leading the Bears as he should have, he's in L.A. because the Bears foolishly opted to stick with Matt Eberflus instead. Seeing the way Harbaugh instantly turned the Chargers into contenders only serves to highlight how incompetent the Bears have been and remain to be. Watching him lift the Lombardi Trophy would cut Bears fans to the bone.

(7) Denver Broncos

Though this is the fourth straight year that the Bears have failed to reach the playoffs, incredibly it's been 10 years since the Broncos last experienced the postseason. Denver rookie quarterback Bo Nix has been one of the best stories in the NFL this year, but his surprising success has led some observers to wonder why Caleb Williams, who the Bears drafted first overall, wasn't able to take his team to the playoffs, too. This is totally unfair to Caleb of course, as he was the least of the Bears' many problems this year. Still, Bears fans should want Nix and the Broncos to make an early exit so as not to cast Caleb in a worse light.

Bears fans' NFC rooting guide

(1) Detroit Lions

There are three NFC North teams in the playoffs, and normally Bears fans would be rooting against each of them with all their might. The Lions might be different. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is atop most Bears fans' wishlist to be the team's next head coach, and though the team could hire him earlier if the Lions were eliminated quickly, a Super Bowl win would ensure that he didn't have unfinished business to take care of in the Motor City. Add in the return of former Bears fan favorite David Montgomery from a late-season MCL injury, and this is the rare instance where Bears fans should be cheering on a division foe.

(2) Philadelphia Eagles

The last time the Bears were in the playoffs, they had to watch the Eagles celebrate a win at Soldier Field as Cody Parkey's game-winning field goal attempt double-doinked harmlessly to the turf. That's reason enough to hate the sound of Fly, Eagles Fly, but Bears fans are also divided still on the 2023 trade that brought Darnell Wright to Chicago and landed Jalen Carter in Philadelphia. Wright was recently ranked as the fifth-best right tackle in the league according to Pro Football Focus, but Carter has been outstanding in his own right. A difference-making performance by Carter would only add fuel to the fire.

(3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The last quarterback to be drafted No. 1 overall who won the Super Bowl was Peyton Manning with the Broncos in 2015, and he was at the very end of his career when that happened. No. 1 picks haven't fared so well in the years since, but Baker Mayfield is trying to change all that. Like Manning was, Mayfield is no longer with the team that drafted him, but seeing him say he's going to Disneyland would give Caleb Williams even more reason to believe that he could follow suit one day. Let's go Bucs, I guess?

(4) Los Angeles Rams

The Bears are casting a wide net in their search for a new head coach, and according to reports, that net could include trading for another team's head coach. Sean McVay is a stealth name to watch in that regard. He's already won a Super Bowl, and he's still only 38. Most NFL teams have tried to find the next Sean McVay, but why not just acquire the original article? It's difficult to imagine McVay wanting to leave L.A. if he wins another Super Bowl, but an early flameout could convince him that there are greener pastures in the Midwest. It may be a long shot, but Bears fans should be rooting for anything that increases their remote chances of being led by someone of McVay's caliber.

(5) Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings have been a great story this year, but who are we kidding? Bears fans wouldn't root for them against any team whose fans don't wear cheese on their heads. The Vikings are representative of what the Bears want to be — a well-coached team that gets the most out of its players and finds ways to win close games. The sooner they get eliminated and the Bears can get to work on catching them, the better.

(6) Washington Commanders

As the top two picks in the 2024 draft, Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels will be measured against each other for their entire careers. Though the statistical profiles from their rookie seasons aren't as disparate as the media would have fans believe, Daniels fares better where it matters most — in the win column, and he beat Caleb head-to-head on a last-second Hail Mary, one of the wildest plays of the entire season. Just because Daniels has won the battle doesn't mean he'll also win the war, but an early postseason exit would help Caleb start next year closer to even footing than if Daniels were to lead the Commanders to an NFC or, knock on wood, a Super Bowl title.

(7) Green Bay Packers

Do you remember the scene from The Office where Michael Scott said that if he had a gun with two bullets and he was in a room with Adolf Hitler, Osama Bin Laden and Toby Flenderson, he'd shoot Toby twice? That's how Bears fans feel about the Packers, so whether Matt LaFleur's team is going against the Eagles, the Chiefs or the Vladimir Putin All-Stars, there's no scenario where Bears fans should be rooting for the Pack. Don't overthink this one.