The Chicago Bears and San Francisco 49ers being 11-4 this late in the season is surprising, in different ways.

The Bears are one of the breakout teams of 2025. They are very likely to win the NFC North after a thrilling Week 16 overtime win against the Packers. The Bears built their record in the first half of the season with a lot of close wins against bad teams, but they have played better over the past month. And they still have a shot at the No. 1 seed.

The 49ers were expected to be good before the season started, but a multitude of injuries should have pushed them well out of the playoff race. But coach Kyle Shanahan has done a great job and the 49ers are also alive for the No. 1 seed. Given how many star players have missed time, the 49ers having a shot at the top seed is remarkable.

The only argument against the legitimacy of the 49ers is the same one the Bears faced a month ago. They have mostly fattened up on bad teams. Since a Week 5 win against the Rams, the 49ers have won seven games and two came against teams currently above .500. Those two wins were against the 8-7 and inconsistent Panthers, and the 8-7 Colts who are a shell of themselves since starting 7-1 and then losing quarterback Daniel Jones. The 49ers have won despite injuries but the injuries still factor in their season: The defense, which has not been great without Nick Bosa and Fred Warner, will have trouble against better teams. That doesn’t take away from them winning 11 games already, but it’s also hard to ignore.

Motivation won’t be a problem with both teams still alive for the No. 1 seed. The Bears are a 3-point underdog, and that is the pick for Sunday night. The 49ers could simply outscore Chicago with a red-hot offense, but the Bears are playing very well too. Chicago should at least keep it close. It’s one of the rare good games on the Week 17 schedule.

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Source: “AOL Sports”