I am probably going to have some haters for this post, but I think it is time to fade Chicago once again. Depending on where you got the line, the Lions covered last week on their late garbage TD. Last week, I said the bye week for Chicago would be a classic case of a bad bye week and that the Bears would lose some of their unbelievable momentum from their previous 3 blowout victories. I was dead wrong last week. I should have realized that it would be hard for Chicago to come out flat for a Monday night game against a division rival. The Bears' defense rose to the occasion once again, coming up with 3 fumble recoveries (two in the redzone), and 1 interception (in the redzone). If the Lions were a slightly more disciplined team, perhaps they would have capitalized on their opportunities and forced the Bears offense to have to answer. Instead the Lions perhaps ruined their entire season by feeding the turnover machine known as the Chicago Bears.
Obviously, good teams create turnovers (Charles Tillman and Lance Briggs are masters of their craft). But championship-caliber teams CAPITALIZE on turnovers! Something the Bears offense didn't do on Monday night, as they had a scoreless 2nd half. And if you look at the yards gained by Chicago, you'll notice the Bears are far from being an offensive juggernaut. If you take away Forte's one explosive play (a 39-yard run), Forte only averaged 2.7 yards a carry. Not to mention, Cutler was an anemic 16/31 for 150 yards passing (he did have a couple cheeky unexpected scrambles).
As you can tell, I am skeptical of the Bears in this spot. Following a Monday night showdown with Detroit, they now have a shorter work week to prepare for the "softer" part of their schedule, They will host a Carolina team that has failed to live up to expectations (then on the road at Tennesse next week). I am just not sure if the Bears are going to be really fired up for the underachieving 1-5 Panthers.
The Panthers fell to an extremely desperate Dallas team last week even though they had a bye week to prepare for the game. Things are starting to look so bad in Carolina that I think both the coaches and players are starting to worry about their job security (as they should). Most people don't think this Panthers team will be able to put up points against this Bears fierce unit, and that this Carolina defense couldn't stop the run to save their lives. However, they did hold this potent Dallas offense to 19 points and 2.74 yards a carry last week.
I think the desperation factor in Carolina when combined with the snoozer of a matchup for Chicago, will make for a Carolina cover. Lets not forget that this Carolina team has played a little better on the road and was seconds away from upsetting the undefeated Atlanta Falcons in the Georgia Dome during week 4.
And my final point, which is a strong one, is that this Carolina team played at Soldier Field almost a year ago today, and they played very competitively. Cam Newton was 27/46 and threw for 374 yards in that game!! Carolina ended up losing a close one 29-34. In that game, Cutler was 9/17 for 102 yards and an interception. So you are probably asking me how the heck Chicago put up 34 points. You won't be surprised when I tell you that they had a pick-6 and a 70-yard punt return by Devin Hester. Matt Forte was also dominant in that game.
This time around, I think this very desperate Carolina team plays defense like they did last week and doesn't get completely dominated on the ground. I also look for the law of averages to kick in, and I think the Bear's fortuitous run of turnovers and pick 6's comes to an end this Sunday. In fact, I think the law of averages kicks in for Cutler (who will be playing through the pain from Monday nights injury), and Jake the Snake may throw a few picks.
Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!! The desperate Carolina Panthers who will be on the road again next week (at Washington) will play a great game and the Bears will never see it coming.
Carolina 27
Bears 24
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