Chicago Bears: Ranking the 5 Toughest Games of 2011 Season

When a team makes it to the NFC Championship, it's all but guaranteed that they will have one of the more difficult schedules in the league. This remains to be true for the Chicago Bears in 2011. 

The NFC North has emerged as one of the more competitive divisions in football, which gives the Bears six games that they are going to have to fight and scrap to win. The remaining 10 games of the season aren't exactly a cakewalk either.

To get back to the playoffs, the Bears are going to have to take care of business in their division and then go out and beat some of the teams around the league.

Here are the five toughest games on the Bears schedule in 2011.

5. Oct. 23: At Buccaneers

Last season the Tampa Bay Buccaneers came out of nowhere and made a great run that ultimately fell short of a playoff appearance despite a 10-6 record. 

The Buc's are a good, quality young team with a great quarterback. Josh Freeman is entering his third season in the league and he has emerged as one of this generation's next great quarterbacks.

What makes Freeman so good is the fact that he doesn't make mistakes. Freeman threw 25 touchdowns last season, but more impressively, he only threw six interceptions. When you play a team that makes few mistakes, they are tough to beat.

The Buc's also got a big surprise at running back last season when LeGarrette Blount came out of nowhere with a 1,000-yard season.

Combine the blooming star in Freeman, the solid running game with Blount, a quality defense and a road game in London and the Bears are looking at a game where they have to be clicking on all cylinders if they want to walk out with a win.

4. Nov. 7: At Eagles

Whether you buy into the hype of the "Dream Team" or not, the fact is that the Eagles were a playoff team last year, and they improved in the offseason. If the Bears aren't buying the hype that's fine, but they better not look past the Eagles. 

The Bears play the Eagles in the eighth game of the season, which has to make you believe that the Eagles will have figured out their problems by then. The Eagles have too much talent to struggle for any longer than that.

Obviously Michael Vick will be a challenge for whatever defense tries to stop him, so the smartest thing that the Bears can try to do is simply contain him. Do not let him beat you with the deep ball and don't let him run a lot on you.

I know it's easier said than done, but the Bears did enough last season to beat the Eagles.

The Eagles are loaded with fast receivers, explosive backs and players all over the field, but what's scary about this matchup is the corner backs that the Eagles have. By putting Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominic Rodgers-Cromartie and Asante Samuel on the field, the Eagles are basically daring opposing offenses to throw on them.

Cutler must be on his game because even the smallest mistake may be costly in this game. If the Bears want to walk into Philadelphia and get a win, they must be flawless.

3. Sept. 11: Falcons

For the season opener the Bears get to play the reigning regular season champion in the NFC in the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons were 13-3 last season and have added weapons on offense to be just as good again. 

What makes this game so difficult is the shortened camp. With the Bears offensive line looking drastically different from last year, the Bears can use as much time as they can get. It helps that the game is at home, but the Falcons are not the type of team you wan to "ease" into the season against.

The Falcons have Matt Ryan who is one of the most intelligent quarterbacks in the league combined with one of the most skilled. Simply put, he's a beast.

Ryan has some quality options in Roddy White and recently drafted Julio Jones, not to mention a solid running back in Michael Turner.

The Falcons will be no cake walk at all, but the Bears do get to play them at home. The Bears must be disciplined on defense, not make mistakes and be able to run the ball to beat the Falcons.

2. Sept. 18: At Saints

As if starting the season against the Falcons wasn't difficult enough, the Bears then have to fly down to New Orleans to take on the Saints in Week 2. Anybody that thinks that this isn't going to be a tough game may as well stop watching football. 

While the Saints are a tremendous football team, one of their biggest strengths is their home field advantage. The "Who Dat" Nation gets that dome loud and it is a terror for opposing offenses to go into that building in win.

It will be difficult for the young offensive line of the Bears to communicate in the electric atmosphere in New Orleans, and a great deal of leadership must be shown by both Jay Cutler and Roberto Garza (if he's still the Bears center at that point).

The Saints won the Super Bowl two seasons ago and have the talent to do it again. They have a future Hall of Famer in Drew Brees, who is surrounded by an abundance of quality receivers and backs. Look for rookie Mark Ingram to be a big piece of the Saints offense this season.

It will be an all out war in Week 2 in New Orleans, but more than anything it will be a great measuring stick for the Bears to see where they are at.

1. Dec. 25: At Packers

It couldn't be any other game. Second to last game of the season. On the road. Christmas Day. Against the reigning Super Bowl Champs. Against none other than the Packers. 

This is the game that the Bears have circled on their schedule and everyone knows it. After losing to the Packers in the NFC Championship last season, the Bears are out for revenge and if they truly want it, it will not come easy.

Playing at Lambeau Field in December is always tough, and it will be no different this year. If the season is going the way that the Bears know it can, than this game may have the division title riding on it.

Last season the Packers were devastated with injuries, and now that they are healthy they are scarier than ever.

It all starts with the quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, who has firmly put himself into the conversation as the best quarterback in the league with Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees.

Rodgers is surrounded by weapons, such as Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, Jordy Nelson, James Jones and a now healthy Jermichael Finley. The Packers also have their running back, as Ryan Grant is back from a season ending leg injury.

While the Packers offense is clearly explosive, their defense is what makes them scary. They are loaded at every position on the field and can completely shut down even the best offenses. Clay Matthews and B.J. Raji emerged last season as two of the best defensive players at their position in football.

Christmas day will be the toughest game of the season for the Bears, but if the Bears want to be the best, they have to beat the best, and on that day, they will have their chance.