Two teams that have been through very trying seasons thus far will be seeking a much-needed win when the Bears and 49ers meet late Sunday afternoon in San Francisco.
The litany of trials and tribulations for the Bears in 2024 is long and detailed, but the gist is this: They’ll enter Sunday’s matchup on a six-game losing streak after starting the season 4-2, and they’ll go in with a new head coach after Thomas Brown took over on an interim basis for the fired Matt Eberflus following the team’s latest close defeat.
Brown started the season as passing game coordinator, was elevated to offensive coordinator when Shane Waldron was fired and is now the man in charge after Eberflus was cut loose.
The 49ers, meanwhile, went into 2024 in a much different position than the Bears. Coming off an overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in last season’s Super Bowl, San Francisco certainly had designs on raising the sixth Lombardi Trophy in franchise history in early 2025.
But the 49ers have underperformed those lofty expectations, in large part because of brutal injury luck all season. They’re now 5-7 after losing three straight, and while their postseason hopes are still alive in the mediocre NFC West, they’re hanging by a thread.
Here’s a closer look at Sunday’s game:
Chicago (4-8) at San Francisco (5-7)
Sunday, 3:25 p.m., Fox
Injuries and inactives
UPDATE: The Bears and 49ers have announced their inactives for Sunday’s game.
For the Bears, those are: WR Tyler Scott, RB Roschon Johnson, OL Ryan Bates, DL Dominique Robinson, DB Elijah Hicks, DB Ameer Speed and OL Larry Borom.
The big news is that two key offensive players, WR D.J. Moore and RB D’Andre Swift, are both active. They had both been listed on Friday’s injury report with quad injuries.
The 49ers’ inactives list, as mentioned, is a long one.
It includes: QB Joshua Dobbs, DL Nick Bosa, OL Aaron Banks, OL Trent Williams, CB Rock Ya-Sin, LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles and RB Israel Abikanda.
Also out is 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey, one of the NFL’s most dynamic players. He’s battled injuries all season and is now out for the rest of 2024 due to a PCL injury.
By the numbers
BetMGM NFL odds: 49ers by 4 (subject to change).
Against the spread: Bears 6-4-2; 49ers 4-8.
Series record: 49ers lead 35-33-1.
Last meeting: Bears beat 49ers 19-10 in Chicago on Sept. 11, 2022.
Last week: Bears lost 23-20 to Lions; 49ers lost 35-10 to Bills.
Bears offense: overall (26), rush (23), pass (27), scoring (23).
Bears defense: overall (22), rush (25), pass (11), scoring (9).
49ers offense: overall (7), rush (7), pass (9), scoring (16).
49ers defense: overall (5), rush (15), pass (4), scoring (24).
Turnover differential: Bears plus-10; 49ers minus-3.
Bears player to watch
QB Caleb Williams. Williams has thrown an NFL rookie-record 232 passes without an interception. The No. 1 overall draft pick has looked more comfortable in the three games since Thomas Brown took over for the fired Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator, completing 75 of 117 passes for 827 yards with five touchdowns, no interceptions and a rating of 99.2. Before that, Williams had a passer rating of 81.0 with nine TD passes and five interceptions. Though Brown will continue to call plays now that he is the interim coach, wide receivers coach Chris Beatty is now offensive coordinator.
49ers player to watch
RB Isaac Guerendo. With McCaffrey and Mason sidelined by injuries, Guerendo will get his first chance as the featured back. The fourth-round rookie has 42 carries for 246 yards in limited action so far this season and had only one start in college at Wisconsin and Louisville.
Key matchup
Bears running game vs. 49ers run D. Chicago has struggled to generate a consistent rushing attack and has been held to fewer than 80 yards on the ground in four of the past five games. San Francisco has struggled of late against the run, allowing 389 yards rushing the past two weeks.
Series notes
The Bears are 2-0 at Levi’s Stadium, winning the first regular-season game there in 2014 and again in 2018. … Chicago won the previous meeting in the 2022 opener and is seeking its first back-to-back wins against San Francisco since winning three straight in 2004-06.
Stats and stuff
The Bears fired a head coach in season for the first time in franchise history Friday when they let Eberflus go with the team on a six-game slide marked by questionable in-game decisions. … The Bears are 2-6 in one-score games, including four during this skid by three points or fewer. … Chicago’s defense has had a takeaway in five straight games. … The Bears are tied for the league lead with five takeaways in the red zone entering Week 14. … Like Williams, WR Keenan Allen has seen a bump in production with Brown calling the plays. The six-time Pro Bowler has 18 receptions for 200 yards and three touchdowns over the past three games, giving him 44 catches for 441 yards and five TDs this season. … The 49ers have lost three straight games and are looking to avoid their first four-game skid since 2021. … San Francisco has lost back-to-back games by at least 24 points for the fourth time in franchise history and first since 2015. … The Niners have committed at least three turnovers and had no takeaways the past two games. That’s first time they have done that in back-to-back games since doing it three straight in 2018. … San Francisco’s Deebo Samuel had 208 yards on kick returns last week for the second most in a game in team history to Abe Woodson’s 210 in 1962 against Detroit. … Samuel has been held to fewer than 25 yards from scrimmage in three straight games for the first time in his career. … The Niners have allowed TDs on 70.7% of red zone drives, second worst in the NFL. … San Francisco has allowed at least 160 yards rushing in consecutive games for the second time in eight seasons under Kyle Shanahan. The Niners also did it in 2021.
Fantasy tip
WR Jauan Jennings has been the No. 1 option for the 49ers in the passing game with Brandon Aiyuk out for the season with a knee injury. Jennings leads the team with 34 targets, 25 receptions and 280 yards receiving the past four games.