This Sunday’s game is actually a pretty big early season test for both teams.
The Bears and Bucs come in at 2-1 each and each has some questions to answer and critics to silence before they can be taken seriously as contenders in their respective divisions, as well as seen among the NFL’s better teams.
In the NFC South, a strong division, the Bucs were generally seen as an also-ran or a team that might battle for third place being that the division had three playoff teams a season ago.
The Bears are also trying to establish themselves as more than just another all-defense, no-offense Chicago team that is finally out of its rebuild.