Is Sunday the Chicago Bears' Super Bowl?

Chicago Bears. Green Bay Packers. Week 17. Winner take all. What more could Bears fans ask for?

Maybe you shouldn't answer that.

Because there’s too much to fix, too many problems and not enough horsepower to actually do any damage in the playoffs anyway.

That’s one line of thought.

But don’t forget the 2011 New York Giants, the team that won the Super Bowl after finishing the regular season 9-7, losing five of their last eight games.

Don’t forget that this is a league where a team can lose by 18 one week and win by 43 the next. (Please see: Philadelphia Eagles Week 15 and 16 results.)

Don’t forget that six weeks into the season, the NFC North was called one of the strongest divisions in the NFL. Remember those days?

Let's drop the word “likely” for a minute and disregard “probable.” Let's think instead about what’s “possible.”

Because it’s entirely possible that Sunday’s game isn’t the NFC North’s Super Bowl. The Bears have the best wide receiver tandem in the game. They’ve got an offensive genius calling plays. They’ve got Lance Briggs back, now with another week of conditioning, and former Pro Bowler Jeremiah Ratliff trending upward.

And then there’s this: Since 2001, only two No. 1 seeds have hoisted the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season. In that same span, two No. 6 seeds have done it.  

The NFL playoffs are the gridiron’s version of March Madness; if you can get there, go ahead and crank that Ellie Goulding tune—the one you downloaded for your girlfriend and not at all because you secretly like it—because it’s true: “Anything could happen.”

What do you think? Can the Bears bottle enough magic for a postseason run? Or are you a realist who thinks the playoffs are a lost cause? Or maybe you think this forward thinking is all for naught, because they’ll fall to the evil empire on Sunday.

Vote in the poll and, if you’re inclined, leave a comment below.