NFC Divisional: Philadelphia Eagles at Chicago Bears (Soldier Field), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff time: 12:30pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. Philadelphia Eagles traveling to Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Soldier Field shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Philadelphia Eagles versus Chicago Bears in the NFC Divisional. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Philadelphia Eagles-Chicago Bears cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Bengals | 12-4 | W1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 10-6 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 10-6 | L1 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 5-11 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | 12-4 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 9-7 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 9-7 | L1 |
| New York Jets | 8-7-1 | W2 |
| Miami Dolphins | 6-10 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle Seahawks | 9-7 | W2 |
| Denver Broncos | 8-8 | W1 |
| Los Angeles Raiders | 7-9 | L2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6-10 | W2 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 4-11-1 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Rams | 10-6 | W3 |
| New Orleans Saints | 10-6 | W1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 10-6 | L1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 5-11 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears | 12-4 | L1 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 11-5 | W1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5-11 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 4-12 | L2 |
| Green Bay Packers | 4-12 | W2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | 10-6 | L1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10-6 | W2 |
| Phoenix Cardinals | 7-9 | L5 |
| Washington Redskins | 7-9 | L2 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 3-13 | L1 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Eagles | 3 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 39121212 |
| Chicago Bears | 7 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 717172020 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Bears | Dennis McKinnon 64 yard pass from Mike Tomczak ( Kevin Butler kick) | 0-7 |
| Eagles | Luis Zendejas 42 yard field goal | 3-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Eagles | Luis Zendejas 29 yard field goal | 6-7 |
| Bears | Neal Anderson 4 yard rush ( Kevin Butler kick) | 6-14 |
| Bears | Kevin Butler 46 yard field goal | 6-17 |
| Eagles | Luis Zendejas 30 yard field goal | 9-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Eagles | Luis Zendejas 35 yard field goal | 12-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Bears | Kevin Butler 27 yard field goal | 12-20 |
| Eagles | Bears | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 22 | 14 |
| Total Yards | 430 | 341 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 4 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 27/55 | 12/23 |
| Pass yards | 407 | 185 |
| Pass TD | 0 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 3 | 3 |
| Sacks taken | 4 | 1 |
| Sack yards lost | 29 | 8 |
| Net pass yards | 378 | 177 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 16 | 33 |
| Rush yards | 52 | 164 |
| Rush TD | 0 | 1 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 0 | 1 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 1 |
| Penalties | 7 | 1 |
| Penalty yards | 60 | 5 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PHI | |||||
| Randall Cunningham | 27/54 | 407 | 0 | 3 | |
| Cris Carter | 0/1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| CHI | |||||
| Mike Tomczak | 10/20 | 172 | 1 | 3 | |
| Jim McMahon | 2/3 | 13 | 0 | 0 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PHI | ||||
| Keith Byars | 7 | 34 | 0 | 13 |
| Randall Cunningham | 3 | 12 | 0 | 11 |
| Michael Haddix | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Anthony Toney | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| CHI | ||||
| Thomas Sanders | 8 | 94 | 0 | 58 |
| Neal Anderson | 14 | 54 | 1 | 23 |
| Brad Muster | 6 | 12 | 0 | 6 |
| Dennis Gentry | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Mike Tomczak | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Suhey | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim McMahon | 2 | -2 | 0 | 0 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PHI | ||||
| Keith Jackson | 7 | 142 | 0 | 65 |
| Keith Byars | 9 | 103 | 0 | 24 |
| Mike Quick | 5 | 82 | 0 | 23 |
| Ron Johnson | 1 | 31 | 0 | 31 |
| Michael Haddix | 2 | 23 | 0 | 13 |
| Cris Carter | 1 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| Anthony Toney | 2 | 9 | 0 | 7 |
| CHI | ||||
| Dennis McKinnon | 4 | 108 | 1 | 64 |
| Ron Morris | 1 | 27 | 0 | 27 |
| Cap Boso | 2 | 16 | 0 | 9 |
| Wendell Davis | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Dennis Gentry | 2 | 9 | 0 | 7 |
| Thomas Sanders | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Neal Anderson | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Chicago Bears defeated Philadelphia Eagles 20-12 at Soldier Field in the NFC Divisional. The final scoring play was Bears: Kevin Butler 27 yard field goal. Top line of the day: Randall Cunningham: 407 pass yards on 27-of-54, 0 TD, 3 INT. Chicago Bears move on to the conference final.
Chicago Bears walked out of Soldier Field as the team that survived an NFC Divisional Philadelphia Eagles will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 20-12. The final scoring play came from Bears: Kevin Butler 27 yard field goal. Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Chicago Bears move on to a conference championship.
Chicago Bears 20, Philadelphia Eagles 12.
Round: NFC Divisional. Q1: 2 scoring plays. Q2: 4 scoring plays. Q3: 1 scoring play. Q4: 1 scoring play.
Top performers: - Randall Cunningham: 407 pass yards on 27-of-54, 0 TD, 3 INT - Thomas Sanders: 94 rush yards on 8 carries - Keith Jackson: 7 catches for 142 yards
NFC Divisional, played at Soldier Field. Final: Philadelphia Eagles 12, Chicago Bears 20, with Chicago Bears taking the result by 8.
**First quarter**
- Bears: Dennis McKinnon 64 yard pass from Mike Tomczak ( Kevin Butler kick) - Eagles: Luis Zendejas 42 yard field goal
**Second quarter**
- Eagles: Luis Zendejas 29 yard field goal - Bears: Neal Anderson 4 yard rush ( Kevin Butler kick) - Bears: Kevin Butler 46 yard field goal - Eagles: Luis Zendejas 30 yard field goal
**Third quarter**
- Eagles: Luis Zendejas 35 yard field goal
**Fourth quarter**
- Bears: Kevin Butler 27 yard field goal
**Top performers**
- Randall Cunningham: 407 pass yards on 27-of-54, 0 TD, 3 INT - Thomas Sanders: 94 rush yards on 8 carries - Keith Jackson: 7 catches for 142 yards