The Chicago Bears are making the trip to face the Green Bay Packers in Week 14, and the winner will take the lead in the NFC North.
It's a massive matchup between the 9-3 Bears and the 8-3-1 Packers. This matchup will have a big impact on the two teams' playoff odds, but more importantly, their chance to win the NFC North.
According to ESPN Research, depending on a win or a loss, the Bears face over a 40% swing in their NFC North division title odds.
Bears face over 40% swing in NFC North odds for Packers' Week 14 game
"These teams will play each other again in two weeks." ESPN Research notes. "With a win, the Bears would have a 64% chance to win the NFC North, but that would fall to 22% with a loss, according to ESPN Analytics."
If the Bears beat the Packers in Green Bay this week, then they will have a 64% chance to win the NFC North. They would be at 10-3, and a game and a half up on the Packers, and two games up on the Detroit Lions.
But if they lose, the Bears will have a 22% chance to win the NFC North. They would have another chance to beat the Packers two weeks later, but would be facing more of an uphill battle to win the division.
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After this week, the Bears face the Cleveland Browns, then the Packers one last time, and finish the season against the San Francisco 49ers and the Lions.
It's not an easy way to close out the year, which makes this Bears-Packers Week 14 matchup a big one for the Bears to win.
Chicago's odds to win the NFC North would surge with a win, and plummet with a loss. If this game wasn't important enough, the massive swing in NFC North odds for the Bears makes this matchup even more important.
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