To Chicago Bears head coach Lovie Smith, it doesn't matter if his team is locked into the No. 2 seed; he wants to beat the Green Bay Packers. Smith's team will know before its Sunday kickoff if the Atlanta Falcons won or lost their early game to the Carolina Panthers. A win means Chicago is locked in to its current position. A loss means the Bears would be playing for the top seed and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. Either way, Smith said his team will follow Herman Edwards' adage: You play to win the game. "We're playing our biggest rival this week," Smith said Wednesday. "We have an opportunity to do something that's never been done in the NFC North, that's win every game in the division. We want to continue to improve going into the playoffs."

Fantasy Analysis:

Just by reading some of his other comments, you can tell Smith is greatly annoyed by reporters asking the same question: Will you rest your starters? You can pencil in a Falcons victory at home versus the Panthers, so how will the Bears handle it? The problem with something like this is that you just won't know until it unfolds. If you trust Smith, it sounds like they will play most of the game against the Pack, which I think is the right call. You don't want a team that has already clinched a first-round bye sitting for three weeks before a playoff game. Smith needs to get his players involved in some real competition before the break. However, Jay Cutler , Matt Forte and Johnny Knox are still risky starts because that could mean nothing after halftime or the third quarter. Not to forget that the matchup itself -- at Lambeau Field against a Packers team in must-win mode -- is pretty tough.