Chicago Bears @ San Francisco 49ers – Week 14 Game Preview: Overview, Keys to Game, Insights
GM Ryan Poles and Bears (4-8) management finally acted the day after Thanksgiving, firing head coach Matt Eberflus following another fourth quarter debacle that snatched defeat out of the jaws of victory. It was the 19th time Eberflus lost a one-score game in less than three total seasons at the helm.
Tempers boiled over in Detroit after brutal clock management let the first place Lions wriggle off the hook with a win. All-Pro cornerback Jaylon Johnson reportedly got into a screaming match with his head coach postgame, forcing Eberflus to leave the locker room. Chicago had no choice at that point and fired him the next day, elevating interim offensive coordinator Thomas Brown to interim head coach.
The Bears next opponent after their 10-day post Thanksgiving mini-bye is another team having a nightmare season, the 49ers (5-7). The defending NFC Champions have been absolutely ravaged by injuries in 2024, including season-ending ones to WR Brandon Aiyuk and RB Christian McCaffrey. Almost every major contributor has missed games with various maladies.
San Francisco still has a potentially explosive offense and averages over 370 yards per game. The problem has been an inability to get the ball into the end zone consistently possibly because of the limited weapons available to quarterback Brock Purdy. The Niners are averaging only 22.5 points per contest, which is in the bottom half of NFL squads, despite being top 10 in yardage gained.
It’s been a very similar problem for Kyle Shanahan’s team on the defensive side of the ball. They are stingy when it comes to allowing yards, fifth fewest in football, but again they allow 24.6 points per game, one of the 10 worst in the NFL. The struggles have been exacerbated by an injury to star pass rusher Nick Bosa who will likely miss the Bears game as well.
The 49ers find themselves in unfamiliar territory, in last place with a losing record after years of consistent success. They still have a lot of blue chip players on the roster and are still a very dangerous opponent.
With teams in disarray like these two are it’s hard to know what’s going to happen in this game, no outcome would be surprising. Could the Bears get a boost from the coaching switch? Or will the team continue to spiral out of control? Either way, the dynamic is definitely going to be different this week.
Where to Watch/Listen
- Sunday, December 8 at 3:25pm CT on FOX, WBBM Radio (English), and WRTO Radio (Spanish).
Keys to Victory
Here are my keys to Sunday’s game. If these things happen, the Bears should have a shot to win.
- Try to keep focus on the field.. There have been a ton of off the field distractions during this last week which could easily effect play on the field. Chicago needs to keep the drama out of mind as much as possible.
- Continued growth from Caleb Williams. The Bears young quarterback has improved every week with Brown at offensive coordinator. If he plays as well in this one as he has the previous two weeks they have a pretty good chance to win.
- Don’t let Deebo Samuel beat you. The Niners dynamic wide receiver is still very much a threat despite injuries around him. He is likely to be the focal point of the offense this week so shutting him down will be key.
- Take advantage of turnovers. San Francisco has committed 19 turnovers in 2024 and Chicago is very good at creating takeaways in their own right. They need more of that this week and they have to turn those mistakes into points to earn a victory.
Don’t Tell Me the Odds
The Niners are 3.5 point favorites at home in Santa Clara against the Bears. The over/under is about average for a typical NFL game at 43.5.
It’s Football Weather
The forecast for Levi’s Stadium Sunday is 66 with mostly sunny skies and only a 5 mile an hour wind.
Official Bears Preview
The new coach will definitely give a boost to the Bears early on but the Niners need to win this game to keep their playoff hopes alive. Tight end George Kittle will pull down a couple of touchdown passes and the home team will outlast Chicago 28-24.
Official Bears Preview
Former Bears defensive tackle and 49ers radio analyst Tim Ryan joins Jeff Joniak and Tom Thayer on Bears, etc. Podcast to preview the Bears vs. 49ers matchup.
