Bears drop 9th straight game in what is now the longest losing streak in franchise history
Another week, another franchise first for the Chicago Bears.
The Bears fell to the Detroit Lions 41-10 at Ford Field on Sunday afternoon for their ninth straight loss. That losing streak is now the longest in franchise history.
Though a near-double digit losing skid is nothing to be proud of, it’s remarkable considering how old the Bears are. The team is one of the founding members of the NFL, and was launched in 1920. Making it through more than a century of football without a losing streak longer than the current one is, well, impressive.
The feat, if it can be called that, is the second similar one the Bears have accomplished this season. In early December, the Green Bay Packers overtook the Bears for the most regular-season wins in NFL history. That was the first time since 1921 that Chicago hasn’t been at least tied atop the league’s franchise wins list. The NFL wasn’t even called the “National Football League” the last time the Bears weren’t leading that list, and Warren G. Harding was just sworn in as the 29th President of the United States.
The Bears are 3-13 on the season heading into next week’s season finale against the Minnesota Vikings. They’ve lost 12 of their past 13 games, and are now in line for the No. 2 overall pick in the draft.
The biggest bright spot for the Bears, outside of the draft pick, is quarterback Justin Fields. Though they fell by 31, Fields had 132 rushing yards on 10 carries against the Lions, which marked his seventh game this season with at least 80 yards on the ground. He’s the third quarterback in league history, along with Lamar Jackson and Michael Vick, to rush for 1,000 yards in a season.
Though the losing streak could hit 10 next week, Fields’ play and a very high draft pick have to help Bears fans swallow the latest franchise first at least a little bit.