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Texans will provide litmus test for Bears

The Bears will face one of their toughest tests of the season Sunday night when they host the Houston Texans in a battle of first-place teams with identical 7-1 records.

“The last couple weeks we’ve played good teams, but we haven’t played a 7-1 team for sure,” said coach Lovie Smith. “Watching the video of them or just looking at the statistics, they’re at the top of the charts on both sides of the football.”

The Bears (+116) and Texans (+100) rank 1-2 in the NFL in point differential. The Bears are 4-0 at home; the Texans are 3-0 on the road. The Bears lead the league with 28 takeaways; the Texans have committed a league-low six giveaways.

“There will be a lot of stars on the football field this week,” Smith said. “We are glad that we’re playing at home. We know how big this game is. We can’t wait to see how we match up against one of the best.”