NFC playoff picture after Week 12: Where do the Bears stand?

While the Bears’ playoff hopes remain slim, there’s another meaningful week of football as Chicago remains “in the hunt” in the NFC playoff picture.

Here’s what the current NFC playoff picture looks like after Week 12:

NFC playoff picture after 12 weeks:

1) #49ers (10-1)
2) #Saints (9-2)
3) #Packers (8-3)
4) #Cowboys (6-5)
5) #Seahawks (9-2)
6) #Vikings (8-3)

—#Rams: (6-5)#Bears, #Eagles, #Panthers (5-6)

— NFL Update (@MySportsUpdate) November 26, 2019

The Bears (5-6) have lost head-to-head matchups against the Rams (6-5) and Eagles (5-6), which doesn’t bode well in the race for a wildcard spot.

The New York Times created an algorithm that lets you simulate the remainder of the season. If the Bears were to win out — which is a tall order — their odds to make the playoffs increase from 2 to 66 percent.

The best hope for Chicago’s slim playoff chances are for them to win out in their final five games to finish 10-6. But it won’t be easy against the Cowboys, Packers, Chiefs and Vikings.

So let’s play a game of “what if?” If the Bears finish 10-6, they’d need the following to happen to lock up a wildcard berth:

• The Rams to finish 9-7 plus one of the following…
• The Vikings lose three of their last five, finishing 10-6 with the Bears owning the tiebreaker
• The Seahawks lose their last five games (including a primetime matchup against the Vikings)

Let’s be honest, the way that this Bears team has been playing recently doesn’t give much confidence that they can beat the Cowboys, Packers, Chiefs or Vikings yet alone win six straight games to close the regular season.

But if they manage to do the impossible — and get a little help along the way — we might be looking at a different conversation here in a few weeks. Crazier things have happened.