LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Chicago Bears headcoach Matt Nagy refused to call Sunday’s matchup against the New York Jets (3-4) a “must-win” game, but the stakes are high for Chicago, who after such a promising start to the season have fallen back to the pack in the NFC North.

“We don’t label any particular game as a must-win,” Nagy said on Wednesday.

That being said, the Bears are only a couple weeks removed from sole possession of first place in the NFC North.

Chicago (3-3) is – by virtue of their division record – in last place; the same spot the franchise finished in each of the past four years.

Consecutive losses to Miami (in overtime) and New England are moderate setbacks the club can definitely overcome, but it allowed Green Bay, Minnesota and Detroit, all of whom experienced various issues earlier in the season, to climb back into the division race.

Still, the Bears have a golden opportunity to make up ground on Sunday.

The Jets have turned their offense over to rookie quarterback Sam Darnold, who despite completing 80 percent of his passes in a win over the Colts two weeks ago, enters Week 8 with 10 interceptions and a 74.3 passer rating.

Nagy was very complimentary of Darnold on Wednesday, but the Bears' defense – led by veteran coordinator Vic Fangio – should have a clear advantage versus the first-year quarterback.

“For him [Darnold] to be a rookie, being thrown into the mix right away, he’s making plays and he’s learning on the run,” Nagy said. “I think they’re doing a good job offensively with what they’re giving him, the types of plays they’re giving him are benefiting him as a rookie. He’s a competitor. He played at a big-time school and has done a good job, so for coming in here and being a rookie he’s being tested and I think he’s doing a pretty good job.”

The Bears have offensive dilemmas of their own – beginning at quarterback – but the team is averaging 28.3 points through six games.

While the Bears take on the sub-.500 Jets, the Packers – coming off their bye week – have to travel to Los Angeles to play the undefeated Rams.

The Vikings host the red-hot New Orleans Saints (winners of five straight) on Sunday night.

And the Lions, who are themselves riding a two-game winning streak, face the Seattle Seahawks, who pounded the Raiders in their last game.

There are no gimmes for the rest of the division.

It’s also not a guarantee the Bears knock off the Jets, but Chicago has the most winnable game (on paper) of the week.

The Bears have to capitalize.

“Every game is a must win for me so it doesn't matter what happened last week,” Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky said. “I mean it's always a must win. So we're trying to be 1-0 each week. No one past game dictates our season. No game coming up is going to dictate our season. We have the same attitude going every week and I guess the last couple of weeks because we have been 0-2 I think we're even hungrier. I know i am just to get back to work and get back into that win column. I mean you can label it as whatever you want, but each week we're trying to go 1-0 and every game is a must win in my mind.”