Dreams are growing in Chicago. Playoff chatter is amplifying. With a recent stretch of quality play and wins over the Carolina Panthers, Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions over the last four games, the Bears are allowing themselves to imagine a storybook ending to their once-dispiriting season. Players and coaches know a microfocus will be needed, specifically toward Sunday’s game against the Browns, to keep such dreams alive. But hey, life has begun to feel more fun again at Halas Hall and around Chicago.

As we head for Week 15, here’s a snapshot look at 12 notable facts and figures.

12

Rank of the Bears defense, which has allowed 314.5 yards per game this season. That’s a major improvement from a year ago, when the Bears ranked 29th in total defense (375.9 ypg). Over the last five games, the Bears have climbed from 23rd to 12th in total defense and 13th to second in interceptions. They also own the No. 2 rushing defense, allowing 83.7 yards per game.

1

NFL rank of the Browns passing defense, which is allowing an average of 159.7 yards per game. The Browns have been particularly stingy at home, allowing 105.1 passing yards and 12.6 points per game. They lead the league in total defense (263 ypg) and third-down efficiency (29.0%). The Browns also rank fourth in interception rate (3.2%)and 10th in sacks (38).

1

Net passing yards by Bears quarterback Justin Fields in his first NFL start, a Week 3 game in 2021 at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Fields was battered all afternoon in that contest. The Browns recorded nine sacks for 67 yards and hit the Bears rookie 15 times. Fields completed six of his 20 passes for 68 yards. The Bears squeezed a field goal out of their opening drive in that 26-6 loss. But over their final 10 possessions, they mustered only 23 yards of offense and five first downs.

3

Passing touchdowns from Fields during his last visit to Cleveland. Sure, that was in the 2022 preseason finale. But it was also a chance for Fields to vanquish some of the demons from that first start against the Browns as a rookie. In that preseason Bears victory, Fields completed 14 of 16 passes for 156 yards and threw touchdowns to Ryan Griffin, Dante Pettis and Cole Kmet as the Bears rolled up 198 total yards and 21 points before halftime.

93

Consecutive pass attempts without an interception by Fields, the longest streak of his career. Fields’ last pick came in the second quarter of a Week 6 loss to the Vikings, a pass that was redirected high into the air when Danielle Hunter hit the Bears quarterback after a protection miscommunication. In three starts since returning from a dislocated right thumb, Fields is 62-for-93 passing for 609 yards with two touchdown passes and a 92.1 rating. (For what it’s worth, the Bears record for consecutive passes without an interception is 205, set by Kyle Orton in 2008.)

4

Starting quarterbacks used by the Browns, who are on to 38-year-old veteran Joe Flacco. Flacco signed to the team’s practice squad Nov. 20 and has made two starts, including Sunday’s 31-27 defeat of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Flacco was 26-for-45 for 311 yards and had touchdown tosses of 34 and 30 yards to tight end David Njoku plus a 41-yard scoring strike to David Bell. The Browns were 5-1 in games started by Deshaun Watson this season, went 1-1 with short-time former Bear P.J. Walker starting and 1-2 behind rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson. The Browns are one of just seven teams in the Super Bowl era to win at least one game with four starting quarterbacks, a fraternity that includes the 2015 Houston Texans, 2007 Panthers, 1998 Saints and the 1987, ‘88 and ‘89 Patriots.

4

Interceptions by cornerback Jaylon Johnson this season, all coming over the last seven games. Not only is that a career high, Johnson had only one interception in the 37 games he played over his first three seasons and was without a pick in the first four games he played this year. With his rookie contract due to expire in March, Johnson could be positioning himself for a top-of-the-market reward with his ball production. He is tied for fourth in the NFL in interceptions behind only DaRon Bland (eight), Geno Stone (six) and Jessie Bates (five). As a team, the Bears have nine interceptions over the last three games.

12

Quarterback pressures, according to Pro Football Reference, recorded by Montez Sweat in the five games he has played since joining the Bears. Pressures, as defined by PFR, are plays on which a player records a sack, a hurry or a quarterback knockdown. Sweat has 3 1/2 sacks with the Bears. And since his arrival, the defense’s sack total has ballooned from 10 in the first eight games to 21 after 13 games.

12

Browns players on injured reserve, including six Week 1 starters. Starting right tackle Jack Conklin was lost for the season after Week 1 with a knee injury. Running back Nick Chubb suffered a gruesome season-ending knee injury the following week. Safety Rodney McLeod tore his biceps last month. Quarterback Deshaun Watson had surgery to repair a fracture in his throwing shoulder. Left tackle Jedrick Willis had season-ending knee surgery this week. And safety Grant Delpit was placed on I.R. on Wednesday with a groin injury. Rookie right tackle Dawand Jones, meanwhile, who started nine games this season, also landed on IR this week and will need surgery after injuring his knee last week in practice.

31

Field-goal attempts made this season by Browns kicker Dustin Hopkins, a league high. That includes three game-winning kicks — a 29-yarder in the final two minutes against the 49ers in Week 6, a 40-yarder as time expired to beat the Ravens four weeks later and a 34-yarder with two seconds remaining to down the Steelers in Week 11. Hopkins is 31-for-34 on field-goal attempts and has made all eight of his attempts from 50 yards or longer. Bears kicker Cairo Santos is also perfect (6-for-6) on kicks of at least 50 yards. Santos is 26-for-28 on field-goal attempts this season.

87.5

Career sacks by Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett, including a team-high 13 this season. Garrett is the franchise’s all-time leader in sacks and has recorded at least 10 in six consecutive seasons. The four-time Pro Bowler set the Browns’ single-season sack record with 16 in 2021, matched that total last season and is threatening to tie or break the record again this year.

6

NFC teams with a winning record since Week 4, including the Bears, who have overcome an 0-4 start to climb to 5-8. The best team in the NFC since Week 4 is the Dallas Cowboys, who have gone 7-2. Four other squads are 6-3 in that span — the 49ers, Eagles, Lions and Vikings. The Bears are 5-4 and head to Cleveland with their first two-game winning streak since late in the 2021 season. The last time the Bears won three consecutive games was in Weeks 14-16 in 2020, when they beat the Texans, Vikings and Jaguars to revive their playoff chances.

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The Timberwolves’ defense has been an unsolvable Rubik’s Cube for most NBA offenses this season.

Joel Embiid cracked the code Wednesday in Philadelphia.

The reigning MVP poured in 51 points to go with 12 rebounds as the 76ers downed Minnesota 127-113 and snapped the Wolves’ three-game winning streak. The performance marked one of the few times this season the Timberwolves truly didn’t have an answer for something the opponent was presenting.

The Wolves were visibly upset with the officiating throughout the contest. Embiid did shoot 18 free throws — and he made 17 of them. But he dominated in every way imaginable. The big man went 17 for 25 from the field, including 9 for 12 from the mid-range.

Minnesota stayed in the game for much of the night with its offense. Karl-Anthony Towns was able to make hay on the interior to the tune of 23 points and 13 rebounds. Anthony Edwards added 27 points, while Jaden McDaniels scored 21.

Rudy Gobert finished with eight points and nine rebounds in just 24 minutes as he battled foul trouble most of the night. Embiid has gotten the better of the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year in each of their past two meetings.

“It’s tough when someone goes to the line 18 times and makes 17 of them, that’s a highly efficient offense. It’s tough to overcome that. And they shot over 53 percent. But certainly Rudy exiting the game in the first four minutes hurt us,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch told reporters. “In general, we’ve got to play with more physicality around Embiid, and we didn’t.”

A strong start to the third quarter had Minnesota up seven with 20 minutes to play. But the Wolves were only able to score alongside the 76ers for so long. Embiid scored 19 points in the third quarter and the 76ers led by three heading into the final frame.

The dominance extended beyond Embiid, as his wingman, Tyrese Maxey, went off for 35 points of his own. Embiid started the fourth quarter on the bench, and Philadelphia managed to extend its lead before the center checked back into the game.

“We didn’t play a very clean or pretty game,” Finch said. “But I thought we were hanging in there and thought we’d find a little bit of a run or a rhythm, and unfortunately we weren’t able to do so.”

Fortunately for Minnesota (20-6), Wednesday marked the last meeting between Philadelphia (19-8) and the Wolves this season unless the two teams meet in the NBA Finals. Embiid missed the first meeting, a 112-99 Wolves win at Target Center on Nov. 22.

Minnesota has allowed more than 120 points in just six games this season. Five of those performances have come on the road.

The Timberwolves return home Thursday for a highly anticipated showdown with the Lakers. Both teams will be playing on the second half of a back-to-back. Los Angeles lost 124-108 to the Bulls in Chicago on Wednesday.

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ROCHESTER, Minn. — Rochester Public Schools received a $10 million donation from Mayo Clinic on Wednesday, erasing the district’s remaining budget cuts and paving the way for it to reverse course on many of the sweeping plans that would have redrawn the face of several of the city’s schools.

During a press conference announcing the donation, Mayo Clinic chief communications officer Halena Gazelka referred to the donation as a “bridge” for the district to “achieve greater financial sustainability.”

While the donation helps immediate funding issues for the district, RPS Superintendent Kent Pekel said the district will pursue another levy request in 2024 to put the district “on the path to financial stability” for years to come.

“If we do not succeed in asking our community to increase their targeted investment in Rochester Public Schools, we will be back here a year from now,” Pekel said. “(The referendum) is indispensable.”

Pekel called the donation an “extraordinary gift given at an extraordinary moment in the life of our community.”

“This investment from Mayo Clinic means RPS can avoid closing schools, raising class sizes and cutting programs,” he said in a written statement.

The changes

As a result, RPS will no longer propose closing Riverside Central Elementary. And Lincoln K-8, which had been slated to move into the Riverside building, will now remain in the same location it always has.

However, Riverside could still see some changes, as an updated district plan has the school becoming the new host for the Spanish immersion program. Currently, the district has Spanish immersion programs at Gage Elementary and Willow Creek Middle School. Under the new proposal, both counterparts of the program would move into Riverside, creating a continuous K-8 Spanish immersion program within a single building.

Moving the Spanish immersion program into Riverside would presumably help fill the building, which had seen declining enrollment throughout the years. That shrinking enrollment was the reason Riverside was selected as one of the schools for possible closure under the original plan.

The district’s new proposal does still include some changes to Pinewood Elementary and Mighty Oaks Early Learning Center, which were the two other schools scheduled for closure under the district’s initial plan.

Rather than closing, Pinewood Elementary would move into the empty half of Longfellow Elementary. In a press release issued in tandem with the district’s press conference, RPS said the two communities of Longfellow and Pinewood would “operate as two schools within the same building.”

Students of Pinewood Elementary would adhere to the traditional schedule it always has. Meanwhile, Longfellow Elementary would keep its unique 45-15 calendar, which means students attend school for 45 days, followed by 15 days of break.

Under its original proposal, the district had proposed discontinuing Longfellow’s unique calendar.

In turn, Mighty Oaks Early Learning Center would then move into the empty Pinewood Elementary building.

The revised plan from the district also included information about transportation. According to the update, the district’s portfolio of district-wide option schools will not have attendance areas of their own, meaning a student could live right next to a DWO school without automatically being “assigned” to that building.

However, the district’s new proposal says that the district-wide option schools would be “provided with transportation service within regions of the school district.”

One feature that is the same as the district’s original plan is the option for families to enroll their children in a neighborhood school that is not the one they would be assigned to based on their address. That means that if a family lives near one school but wants to attend a different school, they can opt to do so if that other school has space available and the family is willing to transport their own child.

The district’s updated plan also addresses a handful of other topics, including school-age child care, the district’s newcomer program and special education services.

The impact

Wednesday’s announcement is the latest update in a tumultuous season for the community of Rochester Public Schools.

The school district has spent the last two years cutting $21 million from its budget and was projecting that it would have to cut another $10 million — which was the basis for many of the changes it had proposed.

In November, voters rejected a request from the district for a $10 million-a-year referendum. Although the money from the levy would have been earmarked for technology-related needs, it would have freed up existing funds the district was already spending on technology that then could have been repurposed for other needs.

Voters rejected the district’s proposed levy request by a narrow margin. Not long after, the district announced its initial proposal of sweeping changes.

That, in turn, resulted in an outpouring of opposition from the students, parents and teachers of the affected schools.

In addition to having to close schools, the district was estimating that its proposed changes were only going to save approximately $3 million. That means the district was going to have to find a way to cut an additional $7 million.

The Mayo influence

Unlike the tumultuous season for RPS, Mayo Clinic donated in the wake of its own season of success and growing influence.

During her comments on Wednesday, Gazelka said Mayo wanted to invest in Rochester for multiple reasons. In the immediate sense, she said RPS supports Mayo by caring for the children of its workforce. In the long term, she said Mayo also sees the donation as an investment in the education of its future workforce, as the students may grow and eventually come to work for the clinic themselves.

“Strong performing schools set our kids up for long-term success, and are critical to the health and vibrancy of our community,” Gazelka said in the release. “This is an investment in seeing all kids reach their full potential, serving as a building block for our future workforce.”

In addition to the $10 million for Rochester Public Schools, Mayo Clinic also donated $4 million to the Coalition for Rochester Area Housing. Mayo Clinic had previously donated $4 million in 2017 to the founding Coalition partners. Mayo will also match donations to the Salvation Army Red Kettle Campaign in Rochester up to $100,000 on Dec. 22 and 23 and will contribute to The Landing MN.

On Nov. 28, the world-renowned clinic revealed plans to invest $5 billion in Rochester’s downtown core with the construction of six new buildings. Just two weeks later in December, the clinic officially opened its Anna-Maria and Steven Kellen building — an artistic structure that was the clinic’s first major real estate addition since the Gonda Building opened more than 20 years ago.

Although significant for Rochester Public Schools, the donation represents a small fraction of the Mayo Clinic’s overall revenue. In August, Mayo reported more than $4 billion in total revenue for the second quarter of the year.

“For Mayo to give us a vote of confidence in our academic agenda and invest in our students today so that we can make sure they have bright futures is a great feeling,” RPS School Board Chairwoman Cathy Nathan said. “I hope the community understands how lucky we are to have a superintendent and administrative staff who have really dug into these details so they could pivot this quickly.”

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A St. Paul man with a history of sex-related offenses was sentenced to two years in prison by a judge who found he violated his probation in November by drinking alcohol, masturbating at a store at Rosedale Center in Roseville and getting booted out of sex-offender treatment.

In February, Phillip Jeffrey Ethen was put on five years of probation after pleading guilty to attempted second-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a 14-year-old girl in St. Paul in July 2022, court documents show.

Phillip Jeffrey Ethen (Courtesy of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office)

It was a guideline sentence handed down by Ramsey County District Judge Jacob Kraus, who stayed a two-year prison sentence and gave Ethen no additional jail time beyond the 206 days he already served.

Last week, Ethen, 42, was back in front of the judge for a contested probation revocation hearing on the November allegations.

Ethen admitted that he was drunk on Nov. 6 at Rosedale Center and that he was kicked out of sex-offender treatment three days later because of it.

Ramsey County Assistant Attorney Cory Tennison told the judge that although one violation was enough to support revoking probation, the state would move forward to put on the record that Ethen also broke the law.

Tennison called Roseville police officer Connor Hallgren to testify. Hallgren said he was working off-duty in full uniform at Rosedale Center that day and responded to Francesca’s, a women’s clothing store, on a report of a man masturbating inside a changing room.

The officer said he saw Ethen through a halfway open curtain lying on the ground with his pants halfway down and his hand on his penis. Ethen, who smelled of alcohol, admitted that he stole two pairs of underwear from Victoria’s Secret before going to Francesca’s.

Past record

Katie Beckstrom, Ethen’s probation officer, gave a rundown of his past criminal related behavior, which dates back to 2012 when he was convicted of interfering with another’s privacy.

Ethen was convicted of indecent exposure-engaging in lewd conduct twice in 2017. In one case, he was caught peering into a neighbor’s window while masturbating. At the time, he acknowledged to officers that he’d been arrested for similar behavior in the past and that he’d been “watching” his neighbor weekly, court records say.

He said at the time that his actions were fueled by an excess of “sexual energy that he (didn’t) know how to deal with properly.”

In 2018, he was seen masturbating in public inside the St. Paul Hotel. He reportedly paid his bill and left the establishment after a security guard kicked him out, but police caught up with him after receiving a similar report shortly thereafter from the Intercontinental Hotel on Kellogg Boulevard, the criminal complaint says. He was convicted of one count of indecent exposure.

In last year’s criminal sexual conduct case, Ethen approached two girls at a fast-food restaurant in the 1500 block of Rice Street and asked them to follow him outside. They did, thinking they were going to get marijuana from him. There, he unzipped his pants and put his hand down a girl’s shirt. They left, and asked someone to call the police.

“Over the past 10 years, (Ethen) has continued to offend, often while on probation and in treatment,” Beckstrom told Judge Kraus at the revocation hearing.

She described Ethen as an untreated sex offender and a public safety risk, and said Ramsey County probation recommended that his stayed prison sentence be executed.

County prosecutor Tennison argued that treatment for Ethen can “most effectively be provided if confined. Local jail and probation has been tried with the defendant many times. It is reckless to think that it will work again.”

Ethen’s defense attorney, Somah Yarney, disagreed. She said that a two-year sentence for Ethen, after he received his 251 days of custody credit, would not give him enough time to complete sex-offender treatment. She asked Kraus to give him time in the workhouse, where he could receive outpatient treatment.

“He is a person who needs services and acknowledges that he needs services,” she said. “And prison can make the problem worse.”

Kraus told Ethen that he put him on probation in February consistent with the plea agreement “to see how well you did.” He added, “I don’t think I even had all the information in front of me at sentencing that I now have about you.”

Kraus said he is concerned about what appears to be escalating behavior from Ethen. “And that it appears as though the best place for Mr. Ethen to get at least a start of treatment is in the (Department of Corrections),” he said. “I also feel like public safety is a grave, grave concern to me if Mr. Ethen stays out.”

After confinement, Ethen will be on conditional release for 10 years.

Because of Ethen’s past convictions, state law allowed Ramsey County prosecutors to enhance an indecent exposure charge against him to a gross misdemeanor level relating to the Rosedale Center incident. He is also charged with disorderly conduct.

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