After a four-game losing streak early in the season left the Eagles at 1-4, Michael Vick and his teammates knew that they would need to be nearly flawless through the final 10 weeks if they wanted to make the playoffs. After losing to their fourth-straight game in Week 5, the 2010 Comeback Player of the Year said that they would be treating each game as "must-win."

Although Monday night's devastating 30-24 loss to the Chicago Bears dealt the Eagles' playoff hopes a significant blow, Vick is still looking ahead with optimism – after all, there is still half a season left to be played.

"Obviously tonight was a big loss for us," he said. "We wanted to take advantage of the opportunity we had to get back to .500. You can't let opportunities like this slip away. We had chances to win this game, but we just didn't execute. We have to put it behind us and correct the problems that we had against the Bears."

With the Giants beating the Patriots Sunday in Foxboro to improve to 6-2, the Eagles' Monday night loss now puts them three games out of the division lead with eight games remaining. The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback is well aware of this fact.

"It's tough right now, and obviously we've dug this hole for ourselves. It's up to us to dig ourselves out," said Vick. "We need to take it one game at a time and try to learn from our mistakes. I think I need to take a more aggressive approach on the field. It's back to the drawing board for us now."

Vick indicated that Chicago's defense did things that the Eagles had not expected them to do, but noted that the changes "didn't have a negative effect upon the offense." But for the first time this season, the Eagles were outgained in terms of yardage, with the Bears accumulating 372 yards to the Eagles' 330.

"We were still able to make the plays that we were able to make," he said. "We were able to stay in the game. That being said, there are a lot of throws I wish I could have back."

Vick, an avid chess player, was asked after the game to compare the Eagles' playoff race to the game.

"We have to keep pushing our pawns, keep staying aggressive, keep on the attack, and keep using all the weapons at our disposal," he said. "In chess, it's never over when you have your queen left on the board. For our team, Andy Reid is that piece."