How many more games will the Bears win in 2023?

The Chicago Bears are 3-7, so anyone predicting how many wins the Bears will end the season with must remember this team hasn’t been very good.

One of their three wins came against the worst team in the NFL — Week 10 against the Carolina Panthers — while the others were over two teams having seasons as underwhelming (or worse) than the Bears in the Washington Commanders and Las Vegas Raiders.

That’s the pessimistic view, of course.

How about some optimism? The Chicago Bears are 3-3 over their last six games. They’re playing like a .500 team with upside. And two of those three wins came with Tyson Bagent at quarterback. Maybe the Bears’ record would’ve been the same with a healthy Justin Fields, but you’d like to think they may have squeezed out one more win over the New Orleans Saints if Fields was in the lineup.

(If you don’t think Fields would’ve made that kind of a difference, you’re probably hoping for losses and a chance at Caleb Williams).

Unfortunately for the Fields doubters, I think the Chicago Bears can finish 2023 with seven wins, which means they end their final seven games with a 4-3 record.

Crazy? Maybe.

Let’s take a deeper look.

Week 11: @ Lions

The Detroit Lions might be the best team in the NFC, and the Bears must travel to their house in what should be Justin Fields’ first game back from injury. It’s a big ask for the Bears to pull off an upset. I don’t think they will. In fact, let’s hope Chicago can keep it close. This one’s an “L.”

Record: 3-8

Week 12: @ Vikings

Sure, the Minnesota Vikings are hot. They’ve won five games in a row and are riding the wave of Josh Dobbs at quarterback. But I still think they’re beatable, and I have no doubt Dobbs will come back to earth (no pun intended) very soon. Maybe it’ll be in time for the Bears’ second shot at them in two weeks. Fields will have shaken the rust of his four-game absence, and as long as Chicago’s defense continues its hot play, they’ll snag an upset win.

Record: 4-8

Week 13: BYE

Week 14: LIONS

Bears fans would love Chicago to split the season series but see above. The Lions are too good to bet against in this year’s NFC North series. And that’s ok. Chicago should view Detroit as a fantastic model to follow as they continue rebuilding. Bears lose again.

Record: 4-9

Week 15: @ Browns

This is another tough matchup on the road against one of the NFL’s best defenses. Do we believe in the Bears’ ability to slow down Myles Garrett? Maybe Darnell Wright will get a few chances at the league’s premier pass rusher, and Braxton Jones continues to play better than he’s given credit for. But the Bears’ offense has struggled to find an identity against average defenses in 2023. If they have any success against the Browns, it’ll be a shock. This will be their 10th loss of the season.

Record: 4-10

…and here’s when the Chicago Bears’ season gets rolling.

Week 16: CARDINALS

Sure, Kyler Murray could make the Arizona Cardinals a much better team over the next month than they are right now (which is great for the Bears’ 2024 NFL draft interests). But even if they do develop with Murray under center, the best they’ll be is a Bears-like team. With few threats on offense aside from Murray, Chicago’s defense should do well at home in this game. Chalk this one up as a win.

Record: 5-10

Week 17: FALCONS

The Atlanta Falcons have a ton of talent on offense, but they’re missing the most important piece: the quarterback. Desmond Ridder is a disaster, and Taylor Heinicke isn’t much better. Rookie running back Bijan Robinson isn’t being used right, and it’s all adding up to coach Arthur Smith’s seat heating up. If the Falcons don’t turn things around soon, Smith will lose the locker room, and the Bears will take advantage in Week 17. Chicago will benefit from being at Soldier Field, and as long as they don’t let Bijan go nuts, they can win this game … and I’m giving them the “W.”

Record 6-10

Week 18: @ Packers

At this point in my predictions, the Bears are 3-3 over their last six games and can end the year with a positive buzz by finishing the year at 4-3 … if they defeat the Green Bay Packers.

It’s been a long time since the Bears have beaten the Packers, Green Bay has won the last nine games between the two historic franchises. But there’s a big difference between this Week 18 game and the previous nine, including Week 1 of this year: Jordan Love stinks, and the Chicago Bears’ defense has improved significantly since their last matchup.

The Bears can beat the Packers … right now. The current Bears are better than the current Packers. Neither team is good, but Chicago isn’t as bad as Green Bay. And because of that, the Bears end the 2023 season with the ultimate high, a victory over the Packers.

And there you have it, a 4-3 finish over the next seven games, bringing the Chicago Bears’ 2023 season record to 7-10.

Teams that finished with a 7-10 record in 2022 ended up with draft picks ranging from No. 8 to No. 13 overall. Sure, Bears fans would prefer a top-five pick, but I’ll take the development of a winning culture and a fringe-top-10 pick over that top-five pick because, remember: Chicago has the Panthers’ first-rounder, which is a lock to be one of the first three picks of the 2024 NFL Draft. It’s a win-win.

What say you? Drop your 2023 end-of-year record prediction in the comments (you have to subscribe to comment).