The Chicago Bears were idle on Sunday for the second week in a row. In Week 7, it was due to their Thursday Night Football victory over the New England Patriots. In Week 8, it is because of thier pending Monday Night Football matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.
The rest of the high-octane NFC North is now through Week 8. On Thursday night, the Green Bay Packers had a convincing win over the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers, who the Bears already beat in Week 1, kept it close for a while, but eventually allowed the Packers to pull away.
Now, Green Bay is 5-3. Jordan Love has started to find his game under center. When he's healthy, he plays the position of quarterback at a respectable level. He is also, as he proved against the Bears a few weeks
ago, capable of going to school on opposing defenses. He did just that against Carolina, as he had 30 completions, 288 yards, and three touchdown passes.
Love's top target in the game, Christian Watson, left via ambulance to go for a test at the hospital, and then returned to the game and finished the game. The Packers are a tough group committed to winning, and they aren't going away any time soon.
As for the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings, they faced each other in one of Week 8's most anticipated games. Minnesota came in as the only undefeated team remaining in the NFL, and the Lions made sure to put an end to that with a 19-15 victory.
Detroit's offense against Minnesota's defense was one of the top unit-vs.-unit matchups so far this season. The Lions came out on top in a narrow fashion, but the Vikings have proven that they might not be as "fraudulent" as some folks think. Both of these teams are still right there with the Bears and Packers in the four-horse race for the division crown.
Lions quarterback Jared Goff, who has been NFL MVP-caliber so far this season, didn't look like himself. He won the game, but there is no doubt that the Minnesota defense gave him trouble. Luckily for Goff, he has Jahmyr Gibbs as a crutch, and he was brilliant with 153 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.
Although the Vikings lost their first game of the season, they will still exit this week atop the division at 6-1. The Lions improved to 5-2, while the Packers are 5-3. If the Bears win on Monday night, they will have sole possession of second place in the division, but they will be in third if they lose. Chicago and Green Bay have yet to have their bye weeks, while Minnesota and Detroit have.
The Bears' matchup against the Seahawks is incredibly important. It is a huge measuring-stick game, which is a major reason. Seattle are the reigning Super Bowl champions, and now the Bears are looking to get over that hump.
Another reason, and perhaps the most important, is that it will keep pace in one of the toughest divisions the NFL has to offer. If they want to have a chance at winning the division and perhaps having a first-round bye, they need to pull out a victory in close to every game.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: How the NFC North fared while Bears wait for Monday Night Football
