It appears more than just Chicago Bears fans found some positives in the team's Week 5 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Dan Hanzus, the author of NFL.com's NFL Power Rankings, did too.
In his Week 6 power ranking of all 32 teams, the Bears moved up to No. 29.
Sure, it's a terrible ranking. But, hey, improvement is an improvement.
"Sometimes a loss can feel like a win," Hanzus wrote. "That's how Bears fans could optimistically look at a 29-22 setback to the Vikings that also served as a hopeful jumping-off point for Justin Fields. The quarterback, who had struggled mightily through the first four weeks of his second season, caught fire in the second half, finishing 12 of 13 for 135 yards and a touchdown in the final two quarters. He added 36 rushing yards and had a long TD run negated by a penalty.
"Fields' hot streak allowed Chicago to erase a 21-3 deficit and put a serious scare into the NFC North leaders. "I think we took a step forward, for sure," Fields said. "A lot of teams in this league would have just laid down and stopped playing." It's a start."
It's been a prevailing theme around the Bears over the last few days. Fields played better. The defense clamped down on Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson in the second half. Chicago was resilient. Tough. They played with passion and as a team.
The Bears will quickly turn their attention to the Washington Commanders (1-4) in advance of Week 6's Thursday night matchup. Washington is ranked one spot lower than the Bears -- No. 30 -- and will provide Fields and Chicago's offense with an opportunity to have their best game of the season in front of a national audience.
As for the rest of the NFC North, the Vikings jumped two spots to No. 7, while the Green Bay Packers fell four to No. 8 after losing to the New York Giants. The Detroit Lions slipped two places to No. 26.