When you get into the second half of the NFL season, it’s usually a good idea to go with the team that’s more desperate for a win.
It’s why we picked the Eagles at +1.5 last Sunday on the road against the Bills, and it’s why people shouldn’t sleep on the 3-4 Bears in this game at the Linc this coming Sunday.
Everyone is aware by now that Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky is a Ryan Leaf-level bust, but the Bears will not be asking him to be Peyton Manning on Sunday against the Eagles’ still-shaky secondary. Trubisky simply needs to limit mistakes, which is difficult for him to do – yes – but not entirely impossible.
Consider that two weeks ago Trubisky and the Bears put up 25 points against the Saints’ strong defense. Twenty-five points is an explosion for Chicago, and despite a horrendous passer rating of 33.5 (he threw 20 incompletions!), Trubisky did toss two touchdowns and did not have an interception.
As for Chicago’s famed defense, it’s not as invincible as it was a year ago – or even last month. You can pass a little on Chicago’s defense right now as they’re allowing 230.6 yards per game (10th in the NFL). This could be a game where Carson Wentz is asked to throw it more than 40 times – something he has only done twice so far this year.
All told, this game is a difficult one to handicap considering that both teams haven’t been great against the spread this season (the Eagles are 3-5 while the Bears are 2-5). But let’s roll with Wentz and the Eagles, who certainly seemed to figure things out last week against the Bills.
It should be noted that following the Eagles’ previous best win of the year (the 34-27 Thursday night win at Green Bay), they followed it up by thumping their next opponent at the Linc (31-6 over the Jets).
The play: Eagles -5
