These road trips to face an NFC team, that come about every eight years, make each one special. The trip in 2004 featured a Texans 24-5 win on a FRIGID day in a game that our pal Seth Payne and the defense dominated. Said defense held quarterback Chad Hutchinson to just 168 yards passing and the entire running game to 54 rushing yards.

It's that one eight years ago, though, that had the nation's attention with both teams sporting 7-1 records in a Sunday Night Football matchup. Alas, it wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing game for the casual fan, but for Texans fans, it didn't matter because the Texans flew home 8-1 after a 13-6 win in the cold and the rain.

Not much is the same about either team from that 2012 matchups. J.J. Watt is, thankfully, still getting it done but there isn't one Chicago Bear on the 2020 team that played in that 2012 game. No surprise, really, but that doesn't mean that this game lacks storylines. Of course, the two starting quarterbacks - Mitchell Trubisky and Deshaun Watson - came out of the 2017 NFL Draft after playing in the same college conference. Both were Pro Bowlers after the 2018 season, but that's really where the comparisons end, really. Watson earned a massive contract extension in 2020 and has taken his game to new heights. Trubisky, on the other hand, has been up and down throughout the last two years and he even displays those tendencies in the same game, as seen in a loss to Detroit. The Bears fans will certainly have a bit of envy seeing Deshaun in a Texans jersey.

However, the Bears, still, have some of the best defensive personnel in the entire NFL. Khalil Mack can wreck any game in a quick minute and interior defensive lineman Akiem Hicks is, arguably, the best interior defender the Texans will face in 2020. Safety Eddie Jackson hasn't been a turnover machine as in years past, but he's still extremely dangerous floating around the Chicago secondary, for certain.

These road trips to face an NFC team, that come about every eight years, make each one special. The trip in 2004 featured a Texans 24-5 win on a FRIGID day in a game that our pal Seth Payne and the defense dominated. Said defense held quarterback Chad Hutchinson to just 168 yards passing and the entire running game to 54 rushing yards.

It's that one eight years ago, though, that had the nation's attention with both teams sporting 7-1 records in a Sunday Night Football matchup. Alas, it wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing game for the casual fan, but for Texans fans, it didn't matter because the Texans flew home 8-1 after a 13-6 win in the cold and the rain.

Not much is the same about either team from that 2012 matchups. J.J. Watt is, thankfully, still getting it done but there isn't one Chicago Bear on the 2020 team that played in that 2012 game. No surprise, really, but that doesn't mean that this game lacks storylines. Of course, the two starting quarterbacks - Mitchell Trubisky and Deshaun Watson - came out of the 2017 NFL Draft after playing in the same college conference. Both were Pro Bowlers after the 2018 season, but that's really where the comparisons end, really. Watson earned a massive contract extension in 2020 and has taken his game to new heights. Trubisky, on the other hand, has been up and down throughout the last two years and he even displays those tendencies in the same game, as seen in a loss to Detroit. The Bears fans will certainly have a bit of envy seeing Deshaun in a Texans jersey.

However, the Bears, still, have some of the best defensive personnel in the entire NFL. Khalil Mack can wreck any game in a quick minute and interior defensive lineman Akiem Hicks is, arguably, the best interior defender the Texans will face in 2020. Safety Eddie Jackson hasn't been a turnover machine as in years past, but he's still extremely dangerous floating around the Chicago secondary, for certain.

With no further ado, let's get to Know Our Week Fourteen Foe - the Chicago Bears

2020 Schedule (5-7)
W, @ Detroit Lions 27-23
W, New York Giants 17-13
W, @ Atlanta Falcons 30-26
L, Indianapolis Colts 19-11
W, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20-19
W, @ Carolina Panthers 23-16
L, @ Los Angeles Rams 24-10
L, New Orleans Saints 26-23
L, @ Tennessee Titans 24-17
L, Minnesota Vikings 19-13
L, @ Green Bay Packers 41-25
L, Detroit Lions 34-30

Bears OFFENSE (in 2020 regular season)
Rushing Yards Per game - 86.9 ypg (31st in the NFL)
Passing Yards Per game - 225.4 ypg (23rd)
Total offense per game - 312.3 ypg (30th)
Turnovers lost - 18 (13 INT, 5 Fumbles lost)

Expected Bears starting offense for Week Fourteen
QB - Mitchell Trubisky
RB - David Montgomery
WR - Allen Robinson
WR - Anthony Miller Jr.
WR - DARNELL MOONEY
TE - COLE KMET
LT - Charles Leno Jr.
LG - Cody Whitehair
C - SAM MUSTIPHER
RG - ALEX BARS
RT - GERMAIN IFEDI

Other Key Offensive pieces
Weapon X - Cordarrelle Patterson
WR/Returner - DeAndre Carter
WR - Javon Wims
TE - Jimmy Graham
TE - Demetrius Harris
TE - J.P. Holtz

Bold - Rookie
ALL CAPS - New starter in 2020

Keys to winning v. the Bears Offense

1. WRAP UP! - This will be the mantra all day long against two extremely physical runners. Starting running back David Montgomery is shorter, more compact, and bounces off tacklers repeatedly, while Weapon X Cordarrelle Patterson is a mix of speed and power that creates issues for defenders out in space.
2. Window dressing is just that - nothing to see here - the one thing Bears offensive coordinator Bill Lazor will absolutely do in this game is show motion, shifts, throughout the contest. Then, they'll run split zone, for example, a play everyone in the NFL runs. However, teams get caught watching the motion and letting that shift or motion impact their eye discipline.
3. Be physical through the catch point - Bears pass catcher Allen Robinson is perhaps one of the most underrated and underutilized passing game weapons in the NFL. He's strong at the catch point and I've got to think the Bears will look to keep him involved in the passing game against a banged up Texans' cornerback unit. Where Robinson creates serious trouble for defenders is on 50/50 passes, so no matter who plays corner, he must fight through the catch point on every ball thrown to Robinson.
4. Attack - The right side of the Bears offensive side, including relative newbie Sam Mustipher at center, has some issues and the Texans have to attack that side of the formation in pass protection.
5. Confidence - Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky has said the right things lately but this week, with Deshaun Watson on the other side, there's probably going to be some pressure on him to outdo the man that was selected ten spots behind him in the 2017 Draft. As such, if the Texans defense can fluster him, erode his confidence early in the game that'll be a huge boost for this defensive unit.

Bears DEFENSE (in 2020 regular season)
Rushing Yards Allowed Per game - 116.1 ypg (17th in the NFL)
Passing Yards Allowed Per game - 238.4 ypg (17th)
Total offense Allowed per game - 354.5 ypg (15th)
Turnovers generated - 12 (7 INT, 5 Fumble recoveries - Bears are -6 in TO margin)

Expected Bears starting defense for Week Fourteen
OLB - Khalil Mack
DT - Akiem Hicks
NT - Bilal Nichols
DE - Brent Urban
OLB - ROBERT QUINN
ILB - Roquan Smith
ILB - Danny Trevathan
CB - Kyle Fuller
S - TASHAUN GIPSON
S - Eddie Jackson
CB - JAYLON JOHNSON

Other Key Defensive pieces
CB - Kindle Vildor
S - DeAndre Houston-Carson
Nickel - Buster Skrine
S - Deon Bush
CB - Sherrick McManus
DT - John Jenkins
DE - Mario Edwards
OLB - Trevis Gipson
OLB - Barkevious Mingo

Bold - Rookie
ALL CAPS - New starter in 2020

Keys to winning v. the Bears Defense

1. Keep Mack out of the backfield - The Texans haven't seen Khalil Mack since we faced him twice playing for the Raiders in 2016. Not surprisingly, I was very happy not facing him over the past three plus seasons. That ends on Sunday when No. 52 aims to wreck the game and the Texans pass protection and edge run blocking must account for one of the best in the game. He's been dealing with a bad shoulder, but I'm not thinking for one second that he won't play in this one.
2. Akiem the Chicago Nightmare - Sure, Mack is a dominant force outside, but the Bears' Akiem Hicks tears up offensive interior units in a quick minute. He's an absolute dude, but he's different than a guy like Indianapolis Colts star DeForest Buckner. Hicks is more like a heavier Jeffery Simmons (Titans) and that guy was a monster against us. The interior must occupy Hicks repeatedly to not allow him to wreck the game...just like 52 on the outside.
3. Be sure, Be right - the Bears secondary doesn't have a ton of interceptions, just seven in 12 games, but they have the personnel to make life miserable on the Texans with ballhawks Deshaun Watson has seen before. First, there's Tashuan Gipson who was a member of the Texans in 2019 and there's Pro Bowler Eddie Jackson who faced Deshaun TWICE in national championship contests in college in 2015 and 2016. The football IQ of those two is off the charts and they can provide issues for Watson and this offense in the middle of the field.
4. Can Hansen and Coutee repeat those performances? - It's difficult to think Texans receivers Chad Hansen and Keke Coutee can both go for 100 yards in consecutive games, but the Texans need both to have a similar impact in this matchup with the Bears defense.
5. Leave it all behind - the 2020 season has been one for the record books, on a number of different levels. Last week's loss was such a gut punch that it's the type of loss that can filter into the following week and be an issue seven days later. In essence, that loss ends up beating a team twice. As such, the Colts can't beat the Texans twice, so the Texans offense must leave the ending of last week's game right here in Houston and create a new, positive vibe throughout the trip to Chicago.