WATCH: Dan Campbell compares the 2023 Bears to the 2022 Lions

At 3-7, the Chicago Bears don’t have the record of a team on the rise. But neither did the 2022 Detroit Lions, who this time last year were only one win better than this year’s Bears, at 4-6.

The Lions also lost their Week 12 game, dropping their record to 4-7 after 11 games.

But then it happened, Detroit won five of their last six games, including an epic victory over the Green Bay Packers in Week 18 that ousted Rodgers from the 2022 playoffs.

The Lions ended the 2022 season with a 9-8 record and were the popular pick among NFL prognosticators to be a bonafide playoff team this year.

At 7-2 and in command of the NFC North, those predictions were on the money.

There are some similarities between the 2023 Chicago Bears and last year’s Lions. The Bears play hard, they have a swagger that teams with their record typically don’t. They keep games close, it feels like Chicago could easily have two more wins on their ledger right now (Broncos and Saints).

How different would this team appear if they were 5-5 instead of 3-7?

Lions coach Dan Campbell met with the media recently and agreed that the Bears aren’t too far away from being a winning team. He isn’t taking Chicago lightly in Week 11, nor should he.

Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields will return to the starting lineup on Sunday after a four-week absence. If we’ve learned anything during Fields’ time as the Bears’ starter, he can turn the improbable into probable on any given play.

Fields’ future with the Bears will be determined by how he plays over the next seven games, that’s bad news for the Lions’ defense.

Here’s what Campbell had to say:

Some of the #Lions players have said that the #Bears remind them of the 2022 Lions. Dan Campbell was asked if he agrees…. pic.twitter.com/iarUm53lTV

— Barroom Network – Aldo Gandia (@BarroomNetwork) November 17, 2023

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