Well, let’s go game by game, which never works but is fun.
The Carolina game on Sunday is HUGE. Win that, and you absolutely do have a chance to be a playoff contender, because your two games after that are Saints (very winnable) and Packers without Aaron Rodgers after a bye (I see the Bears winning this game).
So that would put you at 5-4.
From there, if you only beat the teams you should beat (again, not likely to go down exactly like this; just a fun mental exercise), teams like the 49ers and Browns and, heck, even the Bengals maybe, that puts you at:
8-7 heading into the final game at the Vikings.
So if the Bears can come up with a near-miracle and beat Carolina on Sunday, 9-7 and being in contention is absolutely in play, even assuming the Bears lose both Lions games and the Eagles game.
Now, heck, the Bears could absolutely lose to any and all those teams, but I see the arrow to this team pointing up.