With Rodgers' status uncertain, Steelers meet Bears in matchup of division leaders

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) is helped up off the field after a hit by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

Pittsburgh (6-4) at Chicago (7-3)

Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, CBS.

BetMGM NFL Odds: Bears by 2 1/2.

Against the spread: Steelers 5-5, Bears 6-4.

Series record: Bears lead 22-8-1

Last meeting: Steelers beat Bears 29-27 in Pittsburgh on Nov. 8, 2021.

Last week: Steelers beat Cincinnati 34-12 at home; Bears won 19-17 at Minnesota.

Steelers offense: overall (28), rush (29), pass (22), scoring (12).

Steelers defense: overall (28), rush (13), pass (32), scoring (16T).

Bears offense: overall (4), rush (2), pass (13), scoring (8).

Bears defense: overall (27), rush (25), pass (23), scoring (26).

Turnover differential: Steelers plus-8, Bears plus-16.

Steelers player to watch

TE Darnell Washington. The 6-foot-7, 300-plus-pound third-year tight end is stepping into his own, and stepping over opponents while doing it. Washington has always been a willing and capable blocker, but has increasingly found himself involved in the passing game. He caught four passes for a career-high 67 yards last week against Cincinnati, including a 31-yard catch-and-run in which he demolished three different defenders. He is a matchup nightmare and figures to be featured no matter who is at quarterback for Pittsburgh this week.

Bears player to watch

WR DJ Moore. The veteran has four 1,000-yard seasons in eight years. But in the past two games, he hasn’t been all that involved. He was targeted four times against the New York Giants two weeks ago and did not catch a pass. In the Minnesota game, he had one catch for 18 yards while being targeted three times. He also carried once for 3 yards. Moore is second on the Bears with 421 yards receiving and third in receptions with 31.

Key matchup

Bears QB Caleb Williams vs. Pittsburgh’s defense. Despite setting a franchise single-season record with his league-leading fifth comeback, Williams is coming off a shaky outing. He continued to struggle with his accuracy and missed some potential big plays, completing 16 of 32 passes for 193 yards. The Steelers are allowing a league-worst 261.7 yards passing per game, so maybe this is just the sort of matchup he needs. Williams ranks 27th among qualifying leaders in the NFL in completion rate at 59.7 percent and is one of just four below 60%.

Key injuries

Steelers: QB Aaron Rodgers is dealing with a broken left wrist, putting the chances of the four-time MVP facing a team he has dominated throughout his career in jeopardy. Mason Rudolph will start if Rodgers can’t go. … OLB Alex Highsmith is dealing with a pectoral injury and could miss a second straight game. … CB Darius Slay is expected to return after sitting out last week while in the concussion protocol.

Bears: CB Jaylon Johnson, who returned to practice last week, has missed eight straight games. … LB T.J. Edwards (hand/hamstring) has missed the past two games. … CB Kyler Gordon missed the first four games because of a hamstring injury and has been sidelined since Week 7 because of a groin injury. He was designated to return to practice Wednesday, opening a 21-day window to activate him off injured reserve … CB Tyrique Stevenson (hip/calf) was injured in a collision with S Jaquan Brisker late in the third quarter last week and left the game after briefly returning.

Series notes

The Bears are 14-1 at home in the series, including a pair of wins over the combined 1943 Philadelphia-Pittsburgh and 1944 Chicago Cardinals-Pittsburgh teams. The Steelers’ lone victory in Chicago was in 1995. Pittsburgh’s record against the Bears is the franchise’s worst against any NFL team still in existence. The Steelers did lose their lone game against the St. Louis Gunners in 1934.

Stats and stuff

Pittsburgh has won two of three to keep its tenuous grip on the AFC North lead. Baltimore, which faces the Steelers twice over the season’s final five weeks, is one game back. … Rudolph, a third-round pick by the Steelers in 2018, has become one of the more reliable backup quarterbacks in the NFL. The 30-year-old has a passer rating of 139.85 in his past four extended regular-season appearances with the Steelers going back to the end of the 2023 season. … The game features two of the top four teams in the NFL in terms of takeaways, with the Bears (22) leading the league and Pittsburgh (18) in a three-way tie for second. … If Rodgers goes, he will try to extend a mastery over the Bears that goes back to his long run in Green Bay earlier in his career. Rodgers is 25-5 all time against Chicago, counting the playoffs. … Steelers RB Kenny Gainwell is coming off one of the best days of his career. Gainwell caught seven passes for 81 yards and two touchdowns last week against Cincinnati and finished with 105 total yards. … Pittsburgh has been successful through the years when facing a QB drafted No. 1. overall, as Williams was in 2024. The Steelers are 69-41-1 against QB’s taken “one-one” since 1950, the best winning percentage (.633) of any team in the NFL over that span. … The NFC North-leading Bears have won seven of eight. … Chicago has five wins this season after trailing in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter, including the past three games. … Five of the past seven games have been decided by five points or fewer, with Chicago winning each of those five games. … The Bears are 3-0 in games decided by two points or fewer and 5-1 when the margin is five or fewer. … Chicago’s wins are against teams that are a combined 20-51-1, and all have losing records. … The Bears have gone three straight games without committing a turnover. … Williams’ five comeback wins are tied for the league lead with Denver’s Bo Nix. … Chicago S Kevin Byard leads the NFL with five interceptions, and CB Nahshon Wright and LB Tremaine Edmunds are tied for second with Jacksonville’s Devin Lloyd with four.

Fantasy tip

Bears WR Rome Odunze could be in for a big game if Williams finds his rhythm. The No. 9 overall pick in the 2024 draft, Odunze has established himself as the No. 1 option in leading the team with 39 receptions, 600 yards and six touchdown catches.

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