This is as big a regular-season game that the Bears have seen this season. While beating the Green Bay Packers in overtime allowed them to gain a 1 1/2-game lead in the NFC North, a victory over the San Francisco 49ers on the road will clinch the division for the Bears and deliver an opportunity to earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
This is an equally huge game for the Niners, because if they beat the Bears and the Seattle Seahawks in the final week of the season, the Niners will finish the regular season as the NFC's top seed.
The Bears have been through a remarkable turnaround under the leadership of first-year head coach Ben Johnson and second-year quarterback Caleb Williams. The team has demonstrated a remarkable ability to perform in the 4th quarter. The end-of-game performance has given the Bears the impetus to rise from last place a year ago to a remarkable position this season.
Byard and Wright must produce 2 takeaways against 49ers attack
This week's game against the 49ers will require the team's best effort of the season. The 49ers are at home and they have won 5 straight games. The Niners offense is functioning at a very high level as head coach Kyle Shanahan's team is averaging 34.2 points during the winning streak.
Brock Purdy has been under center throughout the 5-game winning streak, and he has been on fire in his last 3 games. He threw 5 TD passes in the 48-27 victory over the Indianapolis Colts Monday night, and he has a 9-1 TD to interception ratio in wins over the Browns, Titans and Colts.
While Purdy has been hot, running back Christian McCaffrey is the key to the offense. He has rushed for 1,039 yards and 9 touchdowns and he has also caught 92 passes for 849 yards and 7 TDs. McCaffrey leads the Niners in rushing and receiving.
Chicago will need a sensational effort on defense if that unit is going to contain the Niners.
The Bears defense has been successful this season largely because of their ability to take the ball away from opponents. Safety Kevin Byard has a league-leading 6 interceptions along with 83 tackles and 7 passes defensed. He will need to come away with at least 1 interception of Purdy's throws.
Cornerback Nahshon Wright has had a sensational and unexpected season. He is right behind Byard with 5 interceptions, and he also has 1 team-leading 11 passes defensed, 2 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and 67 tackles. He has to continue to produce against the Niners.
Williams will throw 2 TD passes and D.J. Moore will catch 1 of them
There is no doubt that Williams has demonstrated his ability to come through in the clutch this season. He has overcome below average or ordinary starts with his ability to come through in the most critical moments of the game. That may not be good enough against the streaking 49ers.
Williams has to avoid mistakes in the first three quarters of the game and take what the San Francisco defense gives him. He will have to find wide receiver D.J. Moore, tight end Colston Loveland and WROlamide Zaccheaus, and he will also have to show off his ability to escape pressure. That's something that has been one of the keys to Chicago's success this season.
Williams has completed 285 of 493 passes for 3,400 yards with 23 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He has also run for 369 yards, averaging 5.2 yards per carry while scoring 3 rushing TDs. If he can avoid fumbling — he has 7 this season — he will put pressure on the Niners defense throughout.
Moore caught the game-winning 46-yard TD pass in overtime to beat the Packers last week. That was a transcendent play for the franchise because it gave the team a victory over the opponent that has tormented them for more than 3 decades.
Moore leads the Bears with 48 catches for 664 yards with 6 touchdowns. He had fallen behind Rome Odunze, but the second-year receiver has missed the last 3 games with a foot injury. Odunze may not be able to play in this game, so Moore will need to have another impactful game.
Running game needs to give Bears time of possession advantage
The running game has been sensational for the Bears this season. Chicago ranks 2nd in the NFL behind the Buffalo Bills in rushing with an average of 152.1 yards per game.
If the Bears can get strong performances from D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai, it would likely swing the advantage to their favor. Not only would the strength of the running game wear down a battered and bruised 49ers defense, it would keep Purdy and McCaffrey off the field.
Swift has 993 yards on the ground while averaging 4.9 yards per carry and he has scored 7 TDs. Monangai has also excelled in his rookie season with 731 yards, a 4.7 YPC mark and 5 TDs.
San Francisco ranks 18th in yards allowed as that unit is giving up 332.8 yards per game.
