Seattle Seahawks

Six Points: Bears vs. Seahawks

Published Sep. 25, 2015 8:30 a.m. ET

foxsports

It's a matchup of winless teams heading into Week 3.

The Chicago Bears (0-2) enter the Pacific Northwest after suffering a 48-23 drubbing, while the Seattle Seahawks (0-2) return to CenturyLink Field for their home opener after coming up short in two winnable road games.

Jay Cutler was hurt in Week 2, suffering a hamstring injury. As such, backup quarterback Jimmy Clausen will draw the road start against a Seahawks defense that is expected to have Kam Chancellor back in the lineup after a contract holdout.

Here are three keys to the game for both the Bears and Seahawks.

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1. Believe a win is within reach

If the Bears go into Sunday's matchup with the Seahawks expecting to lose, there's no way they will win. With starting quarterback Jay Cutler out, Chicago must rally around backup Jimmy Clausen and scrap for every yard they can get. Both teams enter this game with 0-2 records; just because Seattle appeared in last year's Super Bowl, that doesn't mean the Bears can't be first to claim a victory in 2015.

2. Avoid Seattle's playmaking defensive backs

The Seahawks field one of the NFL's most feared cornerbacks in Richard Sherman (24 career interceptions) and possibly the league's finest safety in All-Pro Earl Thomas. Seattle is supposed to get Kam Chancellor back this week, so that's yet another intimidating defensive back to worry about. The Bears should continue to lean on their leading pass-catcher, tight end Martellus Bennett, to get open underneath Seattle's secondary.

3. Create takeaways on defense

The Bears are entering an extremely hostile environment, as the fans at CenturyLink Field are known to be some of the loudest. The most effective way to suck the energy out of a stadium is to steal the ball from the home team. Vic Fangio's defense, which is still searching for its first sack of the season, must turn up the pressure and create a takeaway or two against the Seahawks on Sunday.

1. Get Jimmy Graham involved

A story earlier in the week reported Graham was unhappy with his current role on offense. But facing the Bears could be a cure all for the Seahawks. Thus far, Chicago has allowed seven touchdowns through the air. Getting Graham involved could be what the Seahawks need to get their offense moving in the right direction going forward.

2. Show Jimmy Clausen different looks on defense

It's clearly a mismatch on paper. Clausen will be making his second start in a Bears uniform on the road in arguably the most raucous road environment. Expect the Seahawks to pressure Clausen all day and make him uncomfortable. You can bet "The Legion of Boom" will be suffocating Bears receivers from start to finish.

3. Ride the energy from the 12th Man

It's the home opener for the Seahawks, but more importantly, Kam Chancellor is expected to play after ending his contract holdout and returning to practice on Wednesday. It's a 0-2 Seahawks team facing a banged up Bears squad traveling cross-country? Not the ideal situation for John Fox's team.