Bears crash the Super Bowl conversation by beating Seahawks; Miami up to No. 1 in CFB Power Rankings

The Bears mauled the defending Super Bowl champs on Monday night. If you didn't believe in the Bears as legit Super Bowl contenders before that game, it's hard to doubt them now. Chicago absolutely mauled the Seahawks for four quarters en route to a 34-17 win. The addition of Jeffery Simmons on the Bears defensive line proved to be worth double what GM Ryan Poles paid to acquire him. On the other side, the Seahawks received some of their lowest marks of the season as they fell further behind in the NFC West race.

Falcons EDGE James Pearce Jr. has been reinstated after an eight-game suspension. With the Falcons battling for an NFC South title, their defense will get some help this week. Pearce, a former first-round pick, has been reinstated after serving his eight-game suspension for violating the league's personal conduct policy. In the offseason, Pearce was arrested following a domestic dispute with then-girlfriend Rickea Jackson and fleeing from the authorities. As a rookie last season, Pearce tallied 10.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss.

No. 22 UCLA stuns No. 5 Arizona in its season-opener. With an 84-75 win, the Bruins certainly looked better than their ranking would indicate in this physical game against their old Pac-12 rival. Elsewhere, the top-ranked Gators kicked off their highly anticipated 2026-27 season with a 77-67 win over No. 14 Miami. Superstar Thomas Haugh showed why he was a favorite to win National Player of the Year with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Things didn't go as smoothly for North Carolina, which barely pulled out an 80-72 win over Western Carolina. At this rate, the honeymoon will be over rather quickly for new coach Michael Malone.

Oklahoma has fired OC Ben Arbuckle amid a disappointing season. It may be too little, too late, but Oklahoma has finally made a staff change on offense. The Sooners have fired Arbuckle after another miserable offensive showing. Arbuckle came down from Washington State as a package deal with quarterback John Mateer, but that pairing didn't pan out in Norman. The rest of the way, NFL Hall of Fame tight end Jason Witten is expected to take over play-calling duties on offense.

The Cardinals are rolling with Gardner Minshew at QB in Week 9. After leading the Cards to a shocking comeback win over the Cowboys, Minshew will make his first start of the season on Sunday. Rookie Carson Beck will remain the backup while Jacoby Brissett has been demoted to third-string. That means Brissett suddenly becomes a trade candidate for playoff hopefuls in desperate need of help at that position.