Mike Ditka thinks Bears still have a shot in NFC North

As he has done in the past, Mike Ditka was the only ESPN TV analyst to correctly pick the Bears to win in their game against the Chargers on Monday Night Football.

But was he picking with his head or his heart?

“It’s more about my loyalty to the Bears,” Ditka told the Sun-Times. “The thing I questioned about Monday’s game was the loss of [Matt] Forte. San Diego had quite a few injuries, too. I really thought the Bears were going to go out there and win the football game. I didn’t care who they had running the football. And Jay has played great. [“Monday Night Countdown”] did a whole thing about his stats and his numbers, but it’s not about that—it’s about wins and losses. Can he be the guy that moves this organization forward to the playoffs?”

While critical of Cutler in the past, Ditka seems to think he just might be able to do it.

“They’re in a position in their division where it’s takable,” Ditka said. “It really is. Green Bay is struggling a bit; people have finally found a solution to them. You pressure a great quarterback, and he’s not as good. Minnesota is playing outstanding. But then again, you know what you have to do when you play them. Detroit? I don’t know where there at. The Bears are right in position, but they have to keep their nose to the grind stone.”

With Ditka’s sweater curse working on the Packers, who knows.