Stephen A. Smith delivered hot take about Bears that backfired in huge way

Dec 18, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith broadcasts before a game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Miami Heat at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bears looked like a new football team in their blowout win over the Washington Commanders on Thursday night, and it is fair to wonder if Stephen A. Smith gave them some added motivation.

Justin Fields and the Bears blew the doors off of Washington from the opening snap, and they did it on the road. Fields got things started with a 20-yard touchdown pass to DJ Moore on the opening drive, and Chicago never looked back en route to a 40-20 victory. The Bears forced two turnovers in the game and led 20-3 at that half.

To say Smith did not see the performance coming would be an understatement. During ESPN’s “First Take” earlier in the day, Smith absolutely unloaded on the Bears and said they are worse than the 2008 Lions, who infamously went 0-16.

.@stephenasmith says the Bears are worse than the 0-16 Lions 😯 pic.twitter.com/U0bY0011DI

— First Take (@FirstTake) October 5, 2023

“This team is worse. This team is an atrocity,” Smith said. “When you look at this team right now from an organizational perspective, they don’t seem to know what the hell they’re doing. (Matt) Eberflus, you have no business being a head coach in the National Football League. We are approaching a calendar year since they’ve won a football game. Do you understand that even when the Detroit Lions went 0-16, they didn’t go a calendar year without winning?”

Smith went on to say that the Bears need to trade Justin Fields to get him in the right situation.

One game does not define a team, but Thursday night’s performance certainly made the Bears better than the 2008 Lions. Even dating back to last season, the Bears had lost 14 games in a row. The 2008 Lions lost 17 straight dating back to their previous season.

With the way the Bears celebrated in the locker room, you would have thought they won the Super Bowl. After hearing the criticism from Smith and countless others, the reaction was understandable.