A well known sports talk show host in Chicago likes to refer to the first place team in the NFC North as the ?tallest midget.? That midget?s name is the Chicago Bears. At 4-3 in the division, they are not just a tall midget, they are a giant. When considering the competition and what they are all going through, the Bears should be a lock to clinch a playoff spot. Why is this? The Bears are improving every week, they are playing as a team, and most importantly, they are healthy. Just look at the other teams in the division. It is hard to make a case for any of them to contend with the Bears. The Green Bay Packers? At 1-6, their season is done. Period. Not even Brett Favre can save them. There would have to be angels in the end zone for the Cheeseheads to come close to a .500 record by seasons end. With Javon Walker and Ahman Green, arguably the two best players on offense, out for the season, Favre is left with no consistent big play threats. The Minnesota Vikings? Well, what did this team expect when they traded away the most talented player the franchise has ever had? At 2-5, this team has no chance to contend, especially with the loss of Daunte Culpepper. The defense, which was revamped in the offseason, is ranked 27th in football. The Detroit Lions? This is the only threat to the Bears right now as their record stands at 3-4. They are technically one game behind Chicago in the loss column, but the Bears have already won the season series. The Joey Harrington/Jeff Garcia combination at quarterback is a bow without an arrow with injuries crippling the wide receiver core. That leaves the Bears. It is no secret that the offense is not that of the Seattle Seahawks or Indianapolis Colts. But when the defense is ranked 3rd in the NFL and they stop the run, it makes it very hard for the offense to lose the game no matter how bad they are. Couple that with the breakout season of Thomas Jones, whose 713 yards rushing going into Sunday?s match up vs. the New Orleans Saints has him 3rd in the NFC, and the emergence of rookie QB Kyle Orton, the Bears are a legit playoff contender. The question with this isn?t whether they are capable to make the post season. Quite frankly, any half decent team put into this North division would have to be favorites. The doubt is whether the Bears can make a run through the playoffs. At this point in the season, its hard to predict whether they will be a big player or not. They could easily get hot offensively and start bulldozing teams when they get to the playoffs, or they could go the other way, play inconsistent football and get drilled on Wild Card weekend. Or they could collapse and not make the playoffs. Right now, the tallest midget suits them well, especially when it means they are in first place.