The Chicago Bears‘ season came to an abrupt end on Sunday night, falling 20-17 in overtime to the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round after pushing the game to the final possession.
It was a painful finish to Chicago’s first divisional round appearance since 2010. The Bears matched the Rams for four quarters in a tense, physical contest before Los Angeles found the decisive play in overtime, silencing a team that had spent the season rewriting expectations.
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This defeat will prevent Simone Biles from attending another Chicago game this season to support Jonathan Owens and continue showing off her customised outfits.
In the immediate aftermath, Bears head coach Ben Johnson did not hide the disappointment inside the locker room, but he also made it clear how much belief had carried the group to this point.
“Disappointing result,” Johnson said. “Our guys are feeling it right now. They all believed. They believed all year. … It was a special year. This will hopefully be a feeling in this locker room that we can use as fuel moving forward.”
For Chicago, the loss cut deep precisely because of how far the team had come. The Bears entered the season with modest expectations and little recent postseason success to lean on.
Instead, they delivered an 11-6 regular season, earned a playoff berth and secured their first postseason win in more than a decade before running into a Rams side built for January football.
Johnson‘s first year in charge reshaped the franchise’s trajectory. Hired in January 2025 with no prior experience as an NFL head coach, he quickly established a clear identity built on discipline, belief and steady improvement.
By the end of the regular season, the Bears were no longer outsiders, but a team capable of trading blows with established contenders.
Against the Los Angeles Rams, that progress was evident. Chicago absorbed pressure, responded to momentum swings and forced the game into overtime against a defence known for thriving in high-stakes moments. For long stretches, the Bears looked comfortable on the divisional round stage.
A loss that stings but also signals progress
Overtime, however, offered no margin for error. One drive was enough to decide the outcome, and it was the Rams who executed when it mattered most.
As the game ended, Bears players were left on the field processing a season that had promised so much and ended just short of the NFC Championship Game.
Despite the heartbreak, the broader picture points forward. Chicago proved it could win meaningful games in January and compete with experienced playoff teams, something that had eluded the franchise for years. The experience of playing, and narrowly losing, at this level is one Johnson hopes will harden his squad rather than discourage it.
The numbers underline that shift. An 11-6 record, a postseason victory and a divisional round appearance represent tangible progress, not a fleeting run. More importantly, the Bears established a sense of belief that had been missing for much of the past decade.
