Are the Bears contenders or pretenders?

Chicago is one of only two teams with a winning record and negative point differential, with Carolina, who are 6-5 (-42) being the other. Unsurprisingly, many haven't exactly bought into the cardiac Bears as contenders. They have a 5-1 record in one-score games this year, and people view that type of success as unsustainable.

My thoughts?

Like the late, great Al Davis used to say, just win, baby. Would I like to see them assert their dominance on a weaker opponent? Make it not so hard on themselves for once? Absolutely. My dog agrees. He's heard enough of me screaming at my TV for the rest of his lifetime.

Still, all that matters is that they win. An ugly win counts just the same in the scoreboard.

With that said, do I blame those knocking the Bears for how they've won? Not really. I do take issue with those discrediting them because they've played the fifth-easiest strength of schedule (according to ESPN's Power Index) thus far, though.

This has been one of the weirdest seasons in recent memory. There are six teams with two or fewer wins this season. Three of those teams have wins against teams that would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. I don't subscribe to the notion of an NFL team getting a cheap win over another NFL team. That has never been truer than in the 2025 NFL season, where seemingly everyone is susceptible to a lousy performance.

This Bears team has taken an awfully similar path to the one the team took 15 years ago. While there are fundamental differences in each team's roster construction and how they've played through ten games, they both have/had a 7-3 record at this point. Much like the '25 Bears, that team was also called frauds after beating up on a relatively easy schedule. They had only faced two teams with winning records up to that point, and many were questioning whether their offense (which finished the year 21st in scoring and total yards) could play championship-level football.

While those concerns were vindicated in the NFC Championship Game, that doesn't change the fact that the team won 11 games, earned a first-round Bye (as the second seed), and won the most recent playoff game in team history. The season may have ultimately been lost in heartbreaking fashion (against the guy they might get a chance to play against on Sunday), but it was still one of the most successful seasons in recent memory.

They were doubted, though. Every. Step. Of. The. Way.

Are the Bears contenders? At this point in the season, with them being only one game out of first place in the conference, leading the league in turnovers, having one of the NFL's best offensive minds at head coach, and the second-best rushing attack? Yes. They're absolutely contenders.