Bears vs. Browns Prediction: Cold weather with playoff implications

David Banks - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese · Senior Writer · 6 hours ago

We have officially reached the stretch run of the NFL season, and the Chicago Bears continue to be in a great place. Sitting at 9-4 through 13 games, the Bears find themselves firmly in the middle of the playoff hunt and continue to be right there with the Green Bay Packers for the NFC North lead.

Had you said that before the season started, there wouldn't be a single fan who wouldn't have signed up for that, as this season has already been a special year. As good as things have been for the Bears, things are about to get as difficult as possible, as the Bears have one of the hardest, if not the hardest, remaining schedules in the NFL.

While there is no such thing as an easy win in the NFL, the Bears should win this game as they enter as seven-point favorites ahead of the matchup with the Cleveland Browns. This is one of those games they need to win as the Bears have the Green Bay Packers, San Francisco 49ers, and Detroit Lions to close out the season.

That is three games against three teams already in the playoff hunt or trying to make the playoffs, as the Bears will earn a playoff berth if they get there. Before they can even think about that, they need to focus on week 15, as this team is now entering the one-game-at-a-time mode. Here are some things to look for in week 15.

Will we see some history?

When we talk about the history of the NFL, both teams find themselves in the history books, not always for the right reasons. These are two of the oldest franchises in the game and are no strangers to history, whether it be good or bad. Sticking with the good side of history, we could see some NFL history on Sunday, with all eyes on Myles Garrett.

Arguably one of the best, if not the best, players in the game, Garrett is a problem on defense as he takes the attention of virtually every player on the entire offensive line. Despite that, Garrett enters Sunday with one of the best seasons in NFL history and is within two sacks of setting a new NFL record, with four games to play.

That is a pretty doable accomplishment for Garrett, but you have to wonder whether he hits that mark this weekend. As good as the Bears' offensive line has been this season, Garrett is a different animal, and it is going to take a colossal effort to keep him out of the backfield and their guy, Caleb Williams, upright.

Will we see Rome Odunze or Kyler Gordon

The Bears are no strangers to the injury bug this season as they have been one of the more injured teams. Just when it looked like they were starting to get healthy, Rome Odunze went down with a stress fracture in his foot, while Kyler Gordon went down with a groin injury against the Packers.

Both are considered week-to-week right now, but with neither practicing all week, it seems their chances of playing this weekend are dwindling by the minute. Should either of them miss this game, the Bears are going to need some of their guys to step up, with Luther Burden most likely sliding into the Odunze role, while CJ Gardner-Johnson could be asked to do more things on the defensive side.

That may not be a bad thing this week, but at some point, the injuries need to stop. For as good a job as Ryan Poles has done building up that roster, if the Bears can't stay healthy and the injuries continue to pile up, there is no way this team can contend by the end of the season.

BUNDLE UP!!!!!

The calendar may not say it's Winter for another week, but Mother Nature doesn't care as Winter has come early this season in the Windy City. Not only has Chicago seen more snow the past two weeks than it has been accustomed to in the last few years, but with single digits and sub-zero winds on Sunday, it is going to be a miserable time on the field.

That is where preparation comes into play, and which young quarterback can handle the conditions better. You would think the Bears and their running game would give them that advantage, but no one likes playing in the cold, and all it takes is one play to change the outcome of a game.

Prediction: Bears win 17-13

No one is going to sit here and call this a trap game, as the Bears need to focus on who they are playing and treat them like a playoff team. Cleveland is one of those teams on paper that the Bears should beat, but as you have seen around the league all season, expect the unexpected.

Cleveland may have the better defense by a long shot, but it's been the Bears' offense that has carried them a lot this season. Given the expected weather conditions at the start of the game, expect things to be incredibly sloppy throughout as the Bears find a way to grab their 10th win of the season, 17-13.