NFC North Week 14 picks: Will the Lions or the Packers prevail in divisional showdown on Thursday night?

In Chicago, the Bears (4-8) are reeling in the wake of a six-game losing streak and their first in-season firing of a head coach in franchise history after Matt Eberflus all but got down on his knees and begged to be fired by just standing there on national TV with a timeout in his pocket and time running out on one of the best examples of coaching malpractice at the end of a game that you’ll ever see. On a more positive note, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams is making Chicago an attractive place to coach for whoever ends up getting the job for next season. He has thrown 232 passes without an interception, which is a rookie record and also the longest stretch by any Bears quarterback ever.

touchdown passes (20).

Sunday, noon

Kirk Cousins comes in as an unpredictable, hot-and-cold, up-and-down .500 quarterback (6-6). Shocker, eh? He threw four picks, including a pick-six, from his mannequin, er, QB position last Sunday, yet still lost by only four points to the Chargers. The Vikings are the better team. Sam Darnold not only is infinitely more salary cap-friendly, he’s also the better quarterback in every way right now. The Vikings’ defense is better and has the home-noise advantage against an older quarterback who’s even more of a sitting duck because he’s clearly not all the way back from last year’s torn Achilles and may never get back even his former limited mobility. Brian Flores wins that battle, but the Vikings, of course, make it a close one. Vikings 30, Falcons 28

Sunday, 3:25 p.m.

Before The Timeout That Never Was, the belief here was the Bears should keep Eberflus and maintain continuity for Williams and a talented roster. After that, Chicago had little choice but to dump a guy who would never regain the trust of his locker room. The Bears might get a one-week bump with interim head coach Thomas Brown. The banged-up 49ers lost Christian McCaffrey again and aren’t the team anyone expected this year. But they’ll have enough juice left defensively to win at home. 49ers 17, Bears 10

Record/vs. spread: 30-12/25-16-1.

Vikings pick/vs. spread: 6-6/5-6-1.