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Chicago Bears vs Carolina Panthers
Soldier Field – Chicago, Illinois
Sunday October 2 – 1:00PM on FOX
Moneyline: Chicago -275, Carolina +235
Spread (ATS): Chicago -7
Over/Under: 45
Odds courtesy of BetOnline
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Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears surprised by winning their opener against Atlanta but haven’t looked very good the past couple of weeks against New Orleans and rival Green Bay. To be fair that is a pretty tough start to the season but the same challenges they had last year remain: Keeping QB Jay Cutler upright and finding an offense that can put a scare into the opposition.
If the Bears want to win again they need to get their offense back in gear. The last two weeks they have scored a combined 30 points and their defense isn’t what it used to be. It all starts with the offensive line which has had trouble protecting for Cutler and opening holes for Matt Forte in the running game. Carolina’s defense is not as stiff as they have faced the last few weeks so it should be easier this Sunday.
These teams met last year and Chicago cruised to a 23-6 victory on the road against a team that wound up being the worst in the league. With Detroit and Green Bay currently 3-0 the Bears need to start winning or else their season will quickly become a lost cause. This is a spot where they have to have a victory but it won’t be as easy as expected. Carolina has been better than people thought.
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers finally broke through with a victory last week after playing their opponents tough in weeks 1 and 2. In their losses rookie QB Cam Newton went off for massive passing yards showing a readiness few expected, but last week, in the victory over Jacksonville, his numbers were much more pedestrian while he engineered his first 4th quarter come from behind victory.
Cam Newton was so hot to start the season it is a little funny that in the game they finally won he was just average. Many thought in the preseason this Panthers team would be epically bad but now with Newton leading the way they may be a pleasant surprise. To find themselves in more games throughout the course of the season they have to get more from their vaunted running back duo. Right now Newton is leading in rushing and that can’t happen in the NFL.
Since Carolina came into the league they have played the Bears 6 times posting a 3-3 record that included last year’s loss. The home team has been the way to play in this series at it has gone 5-1 SU. Still, I like Carolina at that +7. Chicago has shown us little to think they can either shutdown Carolina or outscore them significantly enough to justify that number.
The odds makers have the Chicago Bears as a -7 point favorite with an over/under of 45.
ATS Pick: Carolina +7
Over/Under Pick: Under
Score Prediction: Chicago 24 – Carolina 20
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Chicago Bears Betting Trends:
- The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Chicago’s last 6 games
- Chicago is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
- Chicago is 15-8 SU in its last 23 games
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago’s last 7 games at home
Carolina Panthers Betting Trends:
- The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Carolina’s last 6 games
- Carolina is 2-11 SU in its last 13 games
- Carolina is 4-9 ATS in its last 13 games
- Carolina is 2-11-1 SU in its last 14 games
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