The Chicago Bears managed to squeak into the NFL playoffs with an 8-8 record thanks to a Week 17 loss from the Arizona Cardinals, and are going up against the No. 2 seed New Orleans Saints in Wild Card weekend.
The Bears finished at .500, winning three of their last four games to get them into the postseason. The Saints, on the other hand, finished 12-4, securing the number two seed in the NFC. If you're a sports bettor, you can probably already predict how the odds were made in this game.
The Saints are heavily favored to take care of business at home against the Bears. Is that justified?
Khalil Mack doesn't think so.
Mack feels like the Bears are receiving “a lot of disrespect” going into their Wild Card matchup. Most analysts aren't even predicting this one to be close, despite the Bears' recent success.
“Me personally, I always feel like an underdog,” Mack said at his Thursday press conference, via Pro Football Talk. “It’s just in me. I know these guys do as well. There’s a lot of disrespect that we’ve been hearing. So obviously, you’ve got to use all of that to your advantage. Not to speak on it so much, but to go out and use our actions. And that’s what we’re looking forward to doing.”
The Saints and the Bears faced off against each other in a Week 8 matchup in Chicago where the Bears fell just short, losing 26-23. Since that game, a lot has changed.
The Bears are rolling with Mitchell Trubisky at quarterback instead of Nick Foles, who was the midseason starter. Chicago will also be facing a flurry of injuries on the defensive side of the ball with Jaylon Johnson and Roquan Smith questionable to play.
Khalil Mack recorded a sack in their matchup earlier this season and he'll have to do more of the same in their Wild Card matchup.
Underdogs or not, it's the NFL and anything can happen. The disrespect may be the fuel that this Chicago Bears team needs to upset the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
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