Chicago Bears beat Seattle after Simmons trade, viewed as Super Bowl contenders

The Chicago Bears won 34-17 away at the Seattle Seahawks on Monday night in the NFL, the top US professional American football league. The result lifted them to 6-2 at the midpoint of the regular season. Sky Sports analyst Neil Reynolds argues that the Bears are now complete Super Bowl contenders, referring to the league's championship game.

An expensive trade

Late last week Chicago acquired all-pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons from the Tennessee Titans. For the 29-year-old, the Bears gave up first-round draft picks in 2027 and 2028. Reynolds sees this as a sign the team believes it is all-in; it was 5-2 when the deal was made.

Simmons made an immediate impact in Seattle. He led the team with six tackles, recorded a sack, had two tackles for a loss and batted down a pass.

The offense

Reynolds singled out quarterback Caleb Williams, who he says is playing at an MVP level. Williams threw for 247 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. Receivers Rome Odunze, Colston Loveland, Luther Burden and Khalif Raymond contribute, and D'Andre Swift ran for three touchdowns. Running back Kyle Monangai is still recovering from injury.

The team is led by head coach Ben Johnson. Last season the Bears reached the playoffs and won in the first round. Reynolds describes this as a classic follow-up year in which a deeper run is possible. Super Bowl LXI is scheduled for Sunday, February 14, 2027.