The road to Santa Clara, Calif., starts in … well, Santa Clara.

If the Chicago Bears (11-4) can dare to dream of making it as far as Super Bowl LX, their most viable path begins with their first trip to host venue Levi’s Stadium, where they will face the San Francisco 49ers (11-4) on “Sunday Night Football” (7:20 p.m., NBC-5).

It’s two playoff-bound teams jockeying for position within not only the NFC, but also their own divisions.

With two games left in the regular season, the Bears need a win or a Green Bay Packers loss — or a tie by both — to lock down their first NFC North title since 2018. The longer shot would be securing the No. 1 seed, which earns a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.

With either outcome, the objective is the same: host as many playoff games as possible at Soldier Field.

Common sense says you always want to play on your turf, backed by your crowd, and the numbers underscore why it’s so important. Since the 2000 season, home teams have gone 169-91 in the playoffs (excluding Super Bowls), a .650 winning percentage, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

“Punching playoffs is cool and all, but we’ve still got work to do,” wide receiver Luther Burden III said. “We’ve got bigger goals, and we’re going to keep our head down and keep working.”

Defensive tackle Andrew Billings said the stakes have “been high since Week 1.”

“Every game was like that game,” he said. “When it comes to the playoffs, what we’re trying to do is prepare ourselves, approaching each week like a divisional game — like you win this and you get the No. 1 seed. And when you do get that … statistically it’s great.”

Here are five things to watch in the Bears-49ers matchup — plus our Week 17 predictions.

1. Pressing question: Can the Bears defense stop the 49ers on third down?

Or in the red zone, for that matter. The 49ers are tough outs in both situations.

San Francisco’s offense ranks second in third-down efficiency at 50%, slightly behind the Packers’ 50.27%. Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen explained why the 49ers excel on third down.

“No. 1 is they do a really good job executing on first and second down,” he said. “They do a great job kind of staying ahead of the chains.

“And then they do a great job of getting to spots. The quarterback does a really good job of reading out the defense, throwing it to the open guy. Yeah, it’s tough to deal with.”

The Bears defense has been pretty good at stalling teams in the red zone — ranking ninth at 54.17% — and there was no better illustration of keeping opponents out of the end zone than Saturday, when the Packers went 0 for 5 in trips to the red zone.

But the 49ers convert 63.33% of their red-zone opportunities into touchdowns, which ranks eighth.

“Their ability to run the football down there in the red area helps them out a lot,” Allen said.

Both third-down and red-zone success draws from the same well.

“They’re extremely well-coached,” Allen said of ninth-year 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan. “How do you know when a team is really well-coached? You just watch the speed at which they operate … up front in the running game and how they get to their landmarks and how they get to their spots and how all the offensive linemen are working in unison in terms of how they run their routes.

“Each player will run a certain route, and no matter who the player is, it looks the same. And so that, to me, is the detail in the coaching, and that’s what makes it really tough to defend.”

Bears coach Ben Johnson said Shanahan runs a precise, detailed offense.

“They know how to attack coverages and it continues to morph and evolve,” he said. “Each year this Shanahan offense looks a little bit different. It’s got some different wrinkles.

“As defenses change, he’s been changing as well, and that’s enabled him to stay on the forefront of some of these concepts.”

2. Player in the spotlight: 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey

McCaffrey leads the NFL with 372 touches, according to NFL Pro’s Next Gen Stats. He has 26.9% of the team’s targets, which is ninth in the league regardless of position. Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell is the only non-wide receiver who receives a higher percentage of targets (29.3%).

That’s the 49ers’ M.O.: Shanahan keeps you guessing — and not just with McCaffrey.

The combination of McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle — both 2025 Pro Bowl selections — is enough to keep a defensive coordinator up at night.

“The backs and tight ends are really tough matchups on a defense,” Allen said. “There’s usually some things, if you have an outstanding receiver … you can do to try to take those guys away. It becomes more challenging inside at the tight end (or) running back position. It’s unique that they’re getting so much production from those two spots.

“Those two guys are as good as it comes in terms of playing the tight end position: Kittle as a blocker, Kittle as a receiver, the run-after-catch that he provides. It’s certainly a challenge.”

Kittle is fourth in the league in expected points added per target (plus-0.74), according to NFL Pro. His availability for Sunday is in question (more on that later).

Allen, the former New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator and head coach, saw a lot of McCaffrey when the latter was the star of the Carolina Panthers and led the NFL with 2,392 scrimmage yards in 2019.

“So I know exactly what type of challenge he presents,” Allen said.

A particularly good matchup will be McCaffrey versus the Bears linebackers in the passing game. According to NFL Pro, McCaffrey has run a route against a linebacker 260 times, 69 more than any other running back.

Bears weak-side linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is one of the best coverage linebackers in the league. He has four interceptions, third at his position, and has held opposing quarterbacks to a 62.2 passer rating, which ranks ninth among qualified linebackers — just behind San Francisco’s Fred Warner.

3. In the fourth quarter, ‘the spark becomes a fire.’

The Bears have scored 83 points in the fourth quarter and overtime over the last eight weeks, the most by any NFL team in that span. They have a league-best six fourth-quarter comebacks this season.

When trailing with four minutes or less to go, the Bears have six touchdowns (tied for first) and average 7.64 yards per play (second), according to Sports Reference’s Stathead.

Caleb Williams has thrown the most touchdown passes (four) and has the third-highest passer rating (115.5) when trailing with four minutes or less to go (minimum 30 plays).

“It’s really just us,” Williams said. “Realizing that it isn’t necessarily the other team that’s actually stopping us.

“We’ve played versus some of the best players in this league. I think that’s where it’s come from. The mindset just changes. A play happens and the spark becomes a fire, and we’re ignited at that point.”

Johnson said the Bears’ fourth-quarter success doesn’t necessarily come from the play-calling but the people.

“We have put a premium on guys that we feel like will be able to handle pressure,” he said. “The guys we look to bring in this building, we want to make sure that they can handle that type of stuff.

“And Caleb’s certainly built that way. I know for certain Colston Loveland’s built that way. We have a number of guys on this roster that are built that way.”

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Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle felt like the Bears did a better job against the Packers of getting off to a fast start, not just a strong finish. They moved 70 yards on their first possession before a botched snap caused them to turn the ball over on downs.

“When you look at it big picture, we didn’t score in the first half,” Doyle said. “The fourth-quarter piece has more to do with the players and them not flinching, them being comfortable in those situations, them feeling like all of their preparation is going to lead to a successful outcome and them just kind of staying with the process.”

Part of it is Williams’ processing seems to speed up and his improvisational skills come alive during gotta-have-it moments in the fourth quarter and overtime.

“His arm talent is elite,” 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said. “It feels like when he starts scrambling, he gets more accurate.”

Shanahan added: “Caleb is one of the best throwers, one of the most athletic quarterbacks I’ve ever seen in terms of his height, weight and speed. He makes some big-time throws, extremely scary on the perimeter, can hold on to the ball for a while — not in a bad way — but by creating stuff which makes coverages have to hold up forever.

“And when you have a talented guy like that who’s got the speed and the size, usually they get a run game, get some bootlegs and play actions off of it, you limit how many times you’ve got to drop back. It makes sense why he is playing at such a high level.”

4. By the numbers

One thing to watch is the turnover battle. San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy threw seven interceptions over his first four starts, including a three-pick game in a 20-9 victory against the Panthers on Nov. 24.

Purdy has been stingier with interceptions in three starts since then (one pick), but he has put the ball on the ground in each of the last two games, losing one of those fumbles.

The Bears lead the NFL with 31 takeaways and a plus-21 turnover differential. They have a takeaway in eight straight games, the longest active streak in the league.

5. Injury updates

Like last week, the Bears will be monitoring the health of their wide receivers. Burden (ankle) returned to practice on a limited basis Wednesday, but Rome Odunze (foot) sat out again.

Down both Odunze — who missed a third straight game — and Burden against the Packers, the Bears leaned on DJ Moore, who has endured his own injury issues this season. Moore had a game-high 97 yards on five receptions, including the walk-off touchdown catch in overtime. He also had a 12-yard run.

“With each player you start to understand reliability and durability, obviously with DJ having to fight through stuff,” Doyle said. “DJ has done a great job of being dependable and just being consistent down-in and down-out.”

Rookie Jahdae Walker was stunned when he learned of Moore’s attendance record from coaches. Moore has missed only two games in his eight-year career — none since 2020 — and one was because he was on the league’s reserve/COVID-19 list.

“I’m like: ‘This dude, is he even mortal? Like, dang,’” Walker said. “He’s never injured. I’ve seen him battle through so many injuries and just keep working.

“Y’all don’t see a lot of stuff that he goes through, pain-wise. I see it from behind the scenes and it’s crazy. I don’t know how he gets up and walks every day. He’s been hurting for real.”

Four members of the secondary popped up on Wednesday’s injury report: Pro Bowl safety Kevin Byard III (ankle) and cornerbacks Nahshon Wright (hamstring), Nick McCloud (illness) and C.J. Gardner-Johnson (knee).

“I can’t speak for anybody else, but I practiced today,” Byard told the Tribune on Wednesday. “So if you ask if I’m going to play, I’m going to play.”

Meanwhile, the 49ers could face a significant setback if Kittle can’t go. He was a non-participant Wednesday because of an ankle injury.

“He’s got a chance, so we’re not ruling him out,” Shanahan said.

Predictions

Brad Biggs (11-4)

The winner will remain alive for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. While the Panthers (8-7) are the only team with a winning record that the 49ers have faced during their five-game winning streak, the closest of those games was 11 points and the average margin was 16.4. The Bears have won only two games by more than that all year: 31-14 over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3 and 31-3 over the Cleveland Browns two weeks ago. Quarterback Brock Purdy is playing really well, and if the Bears sit in zone coverage, he’s capable of a big game. The status of tight end George Kittle (ankle) is a significant question. He’s pivotal to the passing and running games, and if he’s unable to go, I might flip my pick.

49ers 30, Bears 24

Sean Hammond (12-3)

It’s hard to pick against the Bears when so much has gone their way this season, but the 49ers are surging at the right time now that Purdy is healthy again. This looks like a scary team at the moment. It won’t be easy for the Bears to pull this one off on the road. If the 49ers can take care of the ball, I think they’ll take care of business.

49ers 30, Bears 27

Phil Thompson (10-5)

The bend-but-don’t break defensive strategy worked out surprisingly well against the Packers, who mostly settled for field goals. But Kyle Shanahan’s offense is too surgical for that. Yes, the 49ers have the league’s worst pass rush and an inconsistent run defense, but I can’t see the Bears winning a shootout at San Francisco.

49ers 31, Bears 27

CHICAGO — Chicago Bears defensive end Austin Booker said he has been fined $5,000 apiece for two roughing-the-passer penalties he was issued during Saturday’s 22-16 overtime win over the Green Bay Packers.

“I did get a fine, but we’ll see what they say on the appeal,” Booker told the Chicago Tribune on Wednesday.

He said he believes it’ll take about a week to receive a ruling on his appeal.

Booker was flagged for roughing the passer on the Packers’ third offensive play of the game, when quarterback Jordan Love threw incomplete to Romeo Doubs on third-and-1 from the Bears 44-yard line.

Then, in the second quarter, on first-and-10 from the Packers 17, Booker was penalized a second roughing the passer for making head-on, helmet-to-helmet contact with Love.

Love left the game and didn’t return. He was placed in concussion protocol and appeared on Tuesday’s estimated report with a left shoulder injury and concussion.

On replays of the second sack attempt, it appeared that Love lowered his head just as Booker was striking, which Booker suggested should’ve been a mitigating factor.

“One hundred percent,” he said. “The first one I’ll take full responsibility for. Like, I landed on him, I should have braced myself more.

“But I think the second one could definitely go both ways.”

Bears coach Ben Johnson said Monday: “That’s 100 percent a flag where he ends up getting concussed, and that’s not what anybody wants. But at the same time that one is a more difficult one to coach just from a technique perspective just because we’re trying to go after the quarterback and it’s a bang-bang play like that.”

Booker agreed Wednesday.

“I’m just a physical player, too, and I was just trying to play fast,” he said. “And things happen quick and sometimes stuff happens. But the first one I can definitely make (it) not happen, because it’s a lot of (lost) field position, for sure. … But the second one, I feel like I was playing hard, playing fast and things happened how they did.”

Booker added later: “At the same time, I know the significance of (a 15-yard penalty), and I’m going to try to clean (it) up for next game.”

The Chicago Bears got a boost to their banged-up wide receiver corps Wednesday with rookie Luther Burden III returning to practice. He was listed as limited with an ankle injury.

Fellow receiver Rome Odunze (foot), however, was a non-participant.

When asked if he expects to play Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers, Burden said: “Yeah, I think so.”

The Bears didn’t issue an injury report Tuesday, but neither Burden or Odunze was spotted on the field during the portion that was open to the media. Burden is fourth on the team in receiving yards with 479 on 36 receptions, but he has the highest catch rate at 76.6%, per NFL Pro.

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With Burden and Odunze inactive for Saturday night’s 22-16 overtime win against the Green Bay Packers, the Bears relied more heavily on DJ Moore, Olamide Zaccheaus and Jahdae Walker.

“It was really tough, man,” Burden said. “It was my first game missing ever, like college, little league.”

Burden was forced to miss the Nov. 2 game in Cincinnati because he was in concussion protocol.

“It was kind of different, just watching my team from the sideline,” he said.

Walker, an undrafted rookie, had his first two career receptions, one of which went for a game-tying touchdown with 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter to force overtime.

“I told him before the play, ‘You’re going to have to come down and make a play,'” Burden said. “Before he even caught the touchdown, I knew where it was going, who’s going to make the play.”

Meanwhile, several new injuries popped up for the Bears on Wednesday.

Linebacker T.J. Edwards (glute) was a non-participant, as were receiver/return specialist Devin Duvernay, linebacker D’Marco Jackson and defensive back Nick McCloud, all listed with illnesses.

With the exception of running back/special teamer Travis Homer (ankle), several limited participants were new additions who didn’t appear on last week’s report. They included safety Kevin Byard III (ankle), cornerbacks Nahshon Wright (hamstring) and C.J. Gardner-Johnson (knee), center Drew Dalman (ankle/hand) and linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga (hamstring).

The Bears opened the 21-day practice window for offensive lineman Luke Newman, who’s designated to return from injured reserve. He was listed as limited with a foot injury. Guard Joe Thuney took a rest day.

Here are three other things we learned Wednesday.

1. Cairo Santos honored.

The Bears kicker was named the NFC Special Teams Players of the Week for Week 16.

During Saturday’s win over the Packers, Santos cut through gusty winds at Soldier Field to boot 46-, 51- and 43-yard field goals, executed the onside kick that set up Walker’s touchdown and drilled the tying extra point — all of which the Bears needed to send the game to overtime.

Special teams coordinator Richard Hightower credited the whole field-goal operation, from Scott Daly’s snaps to Tory Taylor’s holds, but held special praise for Santos navigating the wind.

“You guys saw the paper cups and all of the things flying and floating all over the field,” Hightower said. “For him to just have the mental fortitude to stay focused and play the conditions is what we talk about doing.

“Not trying to beat the conditions, not being upset about the conditions, but play the conditions.”

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Added special teamer Josh Blackwell: “He makes incredible kicks in the wind and elements, so it’s no surprise to us, to me, that he’s winning an award like that. He deserves all that and all the credit in the world.”

Santos expressed his appreciation for the recognition given some of the bumps he has experienced this season. He missed two games with a right thigh injury, and his accuracy has dipped to 82.8% (ranked 35th among qualifiers) from 93.8% five years ago in his first season in Chicago.

“It definitely helps me kind of stay on path that what I’m doing it’s going turn into great things,” Santos said of the award. “I just want to make kicks to help the team.”

Five Bears have been named Player of the Week this season, the first time they have had at least that many receive the honor since 2006 (six).

2. Another side of the pivotal onside kick.

Onside kicks rarely work, but one did during the rally against the Packers. Hightower said his unit spends “hours and hours and hours” practicing the kicks.

“Some people tend to think that you can just go out there and you just kick the ball and ‘Oh, they got it,’ you know what I mean? Like, that’s crazy,” he said. “(Cairo Santos has) done so much work on the premises here. … I’ve tried to stop him at times from kicking onside kicks so much, like, ‘Hey, it’s time to go in, time to go in.’ …

“It’s not an accident, like he put work in for it, and he hit a really good ball.”

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The ball took a hop before Packers receiver Romeo Doubs dropped it, and Blackwell pounced and recovered it.

“The kick that (Santos) hit was perfect,” Blackwell said. “Right spot. Executed it right.”

Hightower said Daniel Hardy and Noah Sewell were the keys to that play, breaking through the Packers receiving line and flashing navy jerseys in front of Doubs’ eyes.

“Hardy got a phenomenal jump on that ball,” Hightower said. “If you go back and look at that play and look at how he timed that up — and he’s worked on that. We’ve had to stop him; he’s been too early, he’s been too late, he’s been right on time. He did a phenomenal job.”

Blackwell could see it from Doubs’ perspective.

“You’ve got a defensive end (Hardy) and a linebacker (Sewell) coming at you at full speed,” he said. “That’d make anybody flinch up.”

Blackwell said they were crucial to the play and allowed him to just keep his eye on the ball the whole time.

“I’m just the back-line player waiting for anything to kick back at me, and sure enough it did,” he said.

3. Wright has his coach’s appreciation.

If not the NFL’s.

The Bears cornerback was snubbed for the Pro Bowl on Tuesday despite leading the league with eight takeaways and two forced fumbles.

One of the latter came in the third quarter Saturday when he stripped Packers running back Josh Jacobs at the Bears 3-yard line. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds recovered the fumble.

Last week, Wright told the Tribune that his favorite takeaway was ripping the ball from Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts during his signature “Tush Push” on Black Friday last month.

“It’s just what he does,” defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. “He’s extremely ball-conscious and he’s looking for the opportunities that present themselves to take the ball away. …

“It’s not the first time he’s done it, but it was a heck of a play by him. He’s had a great year. He’s made a lot of big plays for us and (I’m) looking forward to him continuing that.”

MIAMI GARDENS — The Miami Dolphins are in a desperate situation as they move toward their home finale against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

Their coach, Mike McDaniel, is fighting to keep his job and their rookie quarterback, Quinn Ewers, is fighting to earn a job. All the while their fans are getting turned off by the entire situation and being constantly reminded the franchise hasn’t won a playoff game since 2000 and the Dolphins (6-9) are concluding their second consecutive losing season.

A strong performance by the Dolphins in their home finale against the Buccaneers (7-8) could go a long way toward soothing the seething anger that’s beginning to bubble to the surface from fans.

Here are five things to look for in Sunday’s game:

Quinn Ewers

The rookie quarterback has drawn positive reviews from coaches and players for his debut performance last Sunday. Ewers seems more confident this week. One thing to watch is how Tampa Bay defends him now that it has a game’s worth of video to review. The Buccaneers have a better idea of Ewers’ strengths and weaknesses and you can be assured they’ll attack his weaknesses.

But Ewers (20 of 30, 260 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions vs. Cincinnati) has a strong arm, good composure, and he makes good decisions so this should be an interesting matchup. Ewers’ success will likely have more to do with things that don’t show up on his stat line such as pre-snap reads, mobility, and ability to deal with in-game setbacks. 

Mike McDaniel

McDaniel, whose job status is in question, is taking lots of criticism both locally and nationally, from media and fans. He appeared to be in better spirits Wednesday than he’s been in a while. He spoke clearly and assertively when addressing the media with very little stammering.

McDaniel seems a bit more confident with Ewers on the field. Players say McDaniel remains the same now as he was a few months ago before the losses began compiling, which seems to indicate he’s not buckling under pressure. We’ll see if that translates to a victory.

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De’Von Achane

Pro Bowl running back De’Von Achane, who is No. 3 in the NFL in rushing at 1,267 yards, is one of the biggest keys to victory. Achane is a dual threat as his 64 receptions, tied for the team lead with wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, for 459 yards attests.

The Buccaneers will do their best to corral Achane but few have been successful so far. Surprisingly, Achane only has four 100-yard rushing games. The Dolphins are 3-1 in those games. However, Achane has eight games with more than 100 yards from scrimmage and the Dolphins are 5-3 in those games. If Achane thrives, the Dolphins usually win.

Run defense

The Dolphins must stop the run. Period. Tampa Bay is tied for 16th in the league in rushing at 116.9 yards per game. That’s so-so. The problem is that Miami’s run defense is 27th in the league at 130.3 yards allowed per game.

The Dolphins have allowed four of their past seven opponents to rush for 105 or more yards and they’ve gone 1-3 in those games. In the bigger picture, the Dolphins are 2-9 when their opponent rushes for 100 or more yards. If the Dolphins allow the Buccaneers 100 or more rushing yards they’ll almost certainly lose.

Turnover margin, penalties

Turnover margin is the category McDaniel values over all others. Unfortunately, the Dolphins are tied for 25th in the league in turnover margin at minus-5. In last Sunday’s 45-21 loss to the Bengals they were minus-3. In that stretch in which the Dolphins won five out of six games they were plus-7 in turnover margin.

Regarding penalties, the Dolphins are good overall. Their 95 penalties are 13th fewest in the league and their 744 penalty yards are tied for ninth fewest. The Dolphins were good vs Cincinnati with three penalties for 20 yards. Unfortunately, one of the penalties was an offensive pass interference that negated a 33-yard reception. If the Dolphins are good in these two categories their chances to win increase greatly.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Prediction time — Will Ewers, Miami defeat Bucs? | VIDEO

MIAMI GARDENS — Miami Dolphins rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers looks to build off a debut as a starter in which he exhibited composure, was poised in the pocket, orchestrated the team’s complex offense and made his share of throws while having some that didn’t go his way.

He gets his second shot at starting in the NFL back at home Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8).

“I want to see growth, and that comes in a numerous amount of ways,” said Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel before the team’s Wednesday practice after a Tuesday walkthrough as players get Christmas Day off Thursday. “I saw some (Tuesday) with how he was quarterbacking the group. He took a step forward in terms of his confidence, his disposition.”

Ewers was 20 of 30 for 260 yards and two interceptions, with one not necessarily his fault, in a 45-21 defeat that got away from the team as a whole.

“There’s a lot of promising things from this start and we’re really encouraged by a lot of his performance,” offensive coordinator Frank Smith said Tuesday.

For the young quarterback, it all starts with how he operates McDaniel’s complicated offense, which involves an array of formations and pre-snap motions. The coach said he was “pleasantly surprised” by how the rookie out of Texas handled those aspects in his first start.

“There’s people moving everywhere before the ball is snapped, and a lot of that was on (previous starter) Tua (Tagovailoa),” senior passing game coordinator Bobby Slowik said Tuesday. “And (Ewers) almost never had an error in that regard, and I think that’s a lot to handle. I think Quinn is working to get there and is pretty dang close, but that’s probably where there’s a few minute adjustments, a little bit of the pre-snap stuff but not a lot. We’re still going to do everything that we do.”

Ewers noted there was only one pre-snap issue the team had in last Sunday’s game.

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Slowik gives Tagovailoa high marks in that aspect of his game that Ewers tries to replicate. Another area is Tagovailoa’s anticipation on his throws.

“Tua’s really exceptional about anticipatory throws, letting the ball go early, particularly before receivers are even out of their break,” Slowik said. “Quinn doesn’t necessarily do that as naturally as Tua did, but he can make up for it.

“He’s got a really whippy release. He might throw later, but it might get there at the same time because of how the ball just fires off his wrist.”

“It’s definitely true,” Ewers said, when the notion was mentioned to him. “Throughout the week, we’ve even changed up some of the footwork that Tua would do to how it would time up with my footwork, with my anticipation.”

There were a few instances last Sunday of timing appearing a bit off with a receiver, as Ewers hasn’t had as many reps with Dolphins pass-catchers as Tagovailoa has.

Ewers said he’ll have to rely on the “QB math” he’s equipped with in order to fine-tune his timing with different receivers, calculating how different targets break on their routes and run to a spot.

“We may not have been good at math in school, but we’re pretty good at math on the field,” Ewers said.

Against the Buccaneers, Ewers will face coach Todd Bowles’ aggressive defense, which ranks fifth in blitz percentage (29.6 percent). The rookie will have to take part in the mind games of how much Tampa will pressure or if the Bucs will counter off the threat of the blitz.

“I feel like it’s notorious that people are going to pressure rookie quarterbacks more,” said Ewers, when asked about the mind games. “Sometimes, it can work in your favor. Sometimes, they get ahead of you.”

Ewers is locked in during this final stretch of the season in which he has taken over as the starter. When asked Wednesday if anyone famous had reached out to him after his debut as a starter, he replied he didn’t know because he has barely checked his phone but that he might have a better idea in two weeks.

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ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — In the wake of the Kansas City Chiefs announcing plans to leave Arrowhead Stadium for a new domed stadium in Kansas in 2031, the home of Chiefs training camp in St. Joseph has provided a statement.

We are beyond proud to have served as the Summer Training Camp home of the Kansas City Chiefs since 2010. Training camp has been a point of pride for our campus, our students, and the greater St. Joseph community. We will continue planning to make future training camps a great experience for the team and the fans," a statement provided by Missouri Western on Monday reads.

The Chiefs reportedly signed a multi-year extension in 2025 with Missouri Western to continue hosting training camp in St. Joseph. Back in July, Chiefs owner Clark Hunt expressed his appreciation of continuing the partnership with Missouri Western.

"It's great for the organization to be able to extend our relationship going forward," Hunt said. "We do believe it's been a key part of helping us win a few championships.

It's unclear exactly how the Chiefs announcement will impact those plans, but the latest statement from Missouri Western indicates planning will continue for training camp in St. Joseph.

For the past 15 years, Missouri Western State University has hosted the annual Chiefs training camp, bringing in thousands of tourists each year from across the country.

CLEVELAND — Fort Hill graduate Ty Johnson scored the 15th touchdown of his career to give the Buffalo Bills the lead Sunday in Cleveland.

Johnson took a handoff and made a defender miss in the hole to find the goal line from two yards out, giving Buffalo a 13-7 lead with 12:54 left in the second quarter.

Buffalo went on to win the game over the Browns, 23-20.

The seventh-year NFL veteran gained the final 16 yards of the Buffalo scoring drive himself on three straight carries, the longest a nine-yard scamper.

Johnson has two rushing touchdowns this season and seven in his career. He has eight receiving scores.

Entering Sunday, Johnson had 29 carries for 133 yards and 19 receptions for 210 yards and another touchdown on the season.

Johnson’s receiving score on Nov. 16 against Tampa Bay was the longest of his career — a 52-yard catch-and-run from Josh Allen.

Johnson led Fort Hill to back-to-back state championships in 2013-14, winning Area Player of the Year both seasons before signing with the University of Maryland. He was a sixth-round pick by the Detroit Lions in 2019.