The Bears scored 28 straight points to start the second half as they hammered the Jaguars 41-17 in Jacksonville. Mitchell Trubisky threw for 265 yards with two touchdowns both to tight end Jimmy Graham and Trubisky ran for a score in the win. The kickoff for the Bears’ regular-season finale against the Packers at Soldier Field next Sunday has been moved from noon to 3:25 p.m. The Bears will secure the number-seven seed in the NFC playoffs with a win over the Packers or a Cardinals’ loss to the Rams. The game will also be meaningful for Green Bay, which has yet to clinch the number-one seed and a first-round bye.
Elsewhere in the NFC North, The Packers hammered the Titans at Lambeau Field 40-14. The Lions were dominated by the Buccaneers 47-7 and the Vikings lost to the Saints 52-33 in New Orleans on Christmas night.
Tonight on Monday Night football, the Buffalo Bills will face the New England Patriots in Foxboro.
In college football action, Liberty upset number 12 Coastal Carolina 37-34 in overtime to win the Cure Bowl. Number 19 Louisiana beat UTSA 31-24 in the First Responder Bowl. and Georgia State breezed past Western Kentucky 39-21 in the LendingTree Bowl.
The Music City Bowl in Nashville has been canceled due to COVID. The Missouri Tigers were forced to pull out of the game against 15th-ranked Iowa due to an increase in COVID-19 cases within the program. Mizzou ends the season at 5-and-5. The Hawkeyes won six in-a-row to wrap up the year 6-and-2.
In college basketball, Ayo Dosunmu scored 30 points for 18th ranked Illinois to beat Indiana 69-60. The 7-3 Illini will host Purdue on Saturday at The State Farm Center.
Northwestern beat 23rd ranked Ohio State Buckeyes 71-70. The WIldcats are 3-0 in the Big Ten for the first time since the 1967-68 season.
Illinois State got a beating by Loyola yesterday 90-60. The Redbirds will have their rematch today with the Ramblers in Chicago.
Over in the NBA, the Chicago Bulls were on the losing end this weekend. On Saturday the Bulls lost to the Pacers 125-106 and on Sunday the Golden State Warriors pulled ahead in the final seconds to win 129 -128. The Bulls are 0-3 and look to bounce back on Tuesday against the Wizards.
The Blackhawks have agreed to terms with forward Carl Söderberg on a one-year contract. Söderberg spent last season with the Arizona Coyotes, notching 35 points in 70 regular-season games. The 35-year-old also appeared in nine Stanley Cup Playoff contests, recording a goal and an assist.
Major League Baseball is mourning the passing of Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro. The infamous knuckleballer passed away over the weekend at age 81 from cancer. Niekro won 318 games in 24 seasons, mostly with the Milwaukee and then Atlanta Braves. He won a record 121 games after age 40.