Chicago Bears hopes that bye week didn't cool them off entering matchup against Miami Dolphins

The Chicago Bears, who are on a three-game win streak for the first time since 2013, are hoping that a bye week didn't cool them off entering their matchup against the host Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

When we last saw the Bears, they were beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 48-10. Chicago's second-year quarterback, Mitchell Trubisky, completed 19 of 26 passes for 354 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions.

"Hopefully," Trubisky said, "this is something I can look back on and say, 'This is where it all started.'"

The Bears, who lead the NFC North with a 3-1 record, are obviously feeling good at the moment.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins (3-2) are down in the dumps after two straight defeats.

"Every loss hurts," Dolphins coach Adam Gase said. "When you put in 110 hours of work in a week and you get kicked in the (privates), it (anger) you."

After getting off to a 3-0 start, the Dolphins have lost two straight road games, getting routed by the New England Patriots 38-7 and falling 27-17 to the Cincinnati Bengals.

In the latter game, the Dolphins led 17-0 late in the third quarter when the Bengals rattled off 27 consecutive points, including two defensive touchdowns on turnovers by Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill.

It's enough to sour Miami's mood.

"It's definitely not the same as when we were 3-0," Dolphins right tackle Ja'Wuan James said when asked about the environment inside the Miami locker room. "But, at the same time, I don't see any guys wavering. Everyone is focused on (the Bears)."

One of Miami's biggest problems right now is its offensive line, where two starters -- guard Josh Sitton and centre Daniel Kilgore -- are out for the season due to injuries. In addition, starting left tackle Laremy Tunsil has a concussion and is unlikely to play this week.

To make matters worse for Dolphins blockers, next up is Chicago's Khalil Mack, who is perhaps the best pass-rusher in the NFL.

In four games this season, he has 24 quarterback pressures, five sacks, four forced fumbles, two passes defensed, one interception, one fumble recovery and one touchdown.

He is also the first NFL player in 13 years to have a sack and a forced fumble in four straight games.

"You're not going to slow (Mack) down," Gase said.

Even so, Mack took a bit of a back seat last week to the 24-year-old Trubisky, who had thrown just nine total TD passes in his 15 previous NFL games.

New Bears coach Matt Nagy is an offensive guru, and he and general manager Ryan Pace added some weapons to the unit this year, including fast tight end Trey Burton and Allen Robinson, a big wide receiver with speed.

"I've been here for a while," Bears starting guard Kyle Long said after the win over Tampa Bay. "It's really great to sit here with a smile on my face. For the past five or six years, I've been saying, 'We're getting better.'

"But now you guys can see what I've been seeing (in practice). It feels good. The secret is out."

(With inputs from agencies.)