The New England Patriots (-3.5) are traveling west to visit the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. CBS will televise the action and this vital early afternoon game is scheduled to get going at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Betting Preview: Chicago Bears vs. New England Patriots
Chicago is entering this game as the underdog and is currently getting 3.5 points. The Patriots are also receiving -160 moneyline odds while the Bears are +140. Vegas has set the over/under (O/U) at 49.5 points, and if one team can find paydirt early, it’ll probably result in a reasonable live betting opportunity.
Early action has been swaying toward the Patriots. The line originally opened at 2.5 while the game’s total was initially set at 50.
The Patriots are down 0.1 units so far in 2018 and 3-3 against the spread (ATS). The team has recorded an O/U mark of 3-3.
The Bears are down 0.8 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 3-2 ATS and own an O/U record of 3-2.
The Patriots have gone 4-2 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Bears are 3-2 SU.
The Patriots are coming off a 43-40 win over Kansas City last week where Tom Brady completed 24 passes for 340 yards and one touchdown. Sony Michel (106 yards on 24 rush attempts, two TDs) led the running attack while White (five receptions, 53 yards) and Josh Gordon (five catches, 42 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
Chicago narrowly fell 31-28 to Miami in Week 6. Mitchell Trubisky completed 22-of-31 passes for 316 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Jordan Howard (69 yards on 14 rush attempts) led the running game as Tarik Cohen (seven receptions, 90 yards) and Taylor Gabriel (five catches, 110 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
New England has run the ball on 45.0 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Chicago has an overall rush percentage of 47.7 percent. The Patriots have produced 123.0 rush yards per game and have seven scores on the ground this year. The Bears are averaging 130.0 rushing yards per game and have three total rush TDs.
It appears that the Bears might hold an advantage in terms of efficiency in the ground game, as their running backs has logged 4.4 yards per carry while the defense is allowing a YPC of 3.9 to opponents. The Patriots have recorded 4.2 yards per carry while allowing a YPC of 4.5 to opponents.
The Pats offensive scheme has averaged 266.5 yards through the air overall and has 13 passing TDs so far. The Bears have produced 252.2 pass yards per contest and have 11 total pass scores.
Defensively, New England has allowed opponents to run for an average of 110.7 yards and throw for 277.7 yards per game. The Chicago D has allowed 282.2 yards per game to opposing passers and 83.4 yards per game on the ground. The Bears are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 5.39 to opposing QBs, while the Patriots have given up a 6.41 ANY/A.
Offensively, Brady has amassed 1,258 passing yards this year, and has connected on 111-of-170 attempts with 10 scores through the air and four interceptions. He’s got a 6.90 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 8.12 over the last two outings.
The Patriots have tried to maintain the clock by feeding their running backs early and often. Along with Rob Gronkowski (330 yards, one TD), Sony Michel (302 rush yards, three rush TDs) and James White (149 rush yards, one rush TD, 246 receiving yards, three receiving TDs) have delivered in the offensive gameplans for New England.
Mitchell Trubisky has completed 94-of-135 passes for 907 yards, five TDs and four INTs for Chicago. His ANY/A sits at 5.18 for the year and 13.03 across his past two games.
The Bears also like to utilize their backfield. In addition to Tarik Cohen (138 receiving yards), Taylor Gabriel (26 rush yards, 199 receiving yards) and Trey Burton (two rush yards, 113 receiving yards, two TDs) have seen a lot of looks lately.
New England Patriots vs. Chicago Bears Free NFL Tip
SU Winner: Patriots, ATS Winner: Bears, O/U: Under
Betting Trends
- Both teams have lost four fumbles this season.
- The Chicago defense has notched 18 sacks on the year while New England has just seven.
- As a team, New England has produced 4.4 yards per carry across its past three outings and 4.4 over its last two.
- Chicago has averaged 4.6 yards per carry over its last three matchups and 4.9 over its last two.
