The Chicago Bears return to the regular schedule to take on the New York Giants at the MetLife Stadium on Sunday 12/2/18.
After playing three divisional games in a span of 12 days and winning all games, the Bears are now at 8-3 on the season and favorites to win their division. On the other hand, the Giants blew another lead last week against the Philadelphia Eagles and have dropped to 3-8 on the season. The Giants have won three of their last five meetings against the Bears although the last time these teams played each other was way back in 2016
Ever since their glory years in the 80’s, the Chicago Bears have always been known for their defense. These days, when teams routinely score 40 points on opponents, Chicago’s hard nosed defense has been the catalyst of their success. The Bears have the best scoring defense in the league, allowing just a measly 19.2 points per game. They have forced 20 interceptions and already 5 pick-sixes after just 11 games played. Eddie Jackson leads the team with four interceptions while Khalil Mack has recorded eight sacks and five forced fumbles.
The Bears have won five in a row but their streak is in danger as the status of starting quarterback Mitchell Trubisky is questionable for the game with an injury on his throwing shoulder. Trubisky missed the Bears’ Thanksgiving Day win over Detroit. If Trubisky is a no-go, then backup Chase Daniels is getting the start. Daniels started against the Lions and he produced 230 passing yards with two touchdowns and no turnovers.
When all is said and done this season, the New York Giants should be watching the playoffs on TV in six out of the last seven years. The Giants opened the season at a pathetic 1-7, then won two games over San Francisco and Tampa Bay and then regressed back to their miserable form the last time out as the dropped a 22-25 contest to the Eagles in a game where they led most of the way. If the Giants want to look back at what went wrong this season, that should include their struggles at home because the Giants are 1-4 SU and 0-4-1 ATS at home this season.
Rookie running back Saquon Barkley has been good as advertised and he is the lone bright spot in what has been another bleak season for the Giants. Barkley has rushed for 829 yards with 8 rushing touchdowns in his maiden season. He also has four more touchdowns from his total 71 catches. Quarterback Eli Manning has thrown for 3,091 passing yards with 14 touchdowns and 7 interceptions this season.
Chicago is 5-0 SU in their last 5 games played and 5-16 SU in their last 21 road games. New York is 4-13 SU in their last 17 games played and 1-4 SU in their last 5 games at home. Head to head, these teams have split their last 8 meetings but the Giants have won three out of the last four games.
Whether Mitchell Trubisky plays or not isn’t the determining factor of this game. It’s going to be the front seven of Chicago against a Giants’ offensive line that’s been shaky. Forgive the word, but I think this is a mismatch and I have a feeling this one is going to be a blow out in favor of the Bears. The G-men are playing like they have given up on their coach and I won’t bet my hard earned money on Eli Manning right now. We’re picking the Chicago Bears to beat the New York Giants on 12/2/18.
The Bears are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games played and 4-2 ATS in their last six games on the road. The Giants are 5-5-1 ATS in their 11 games this season and are 0-4-1 ATS in their last five home games. Head to head, the Giants are 3-1 ATS in their last five games against the Bears. Chicago is 7-3 ATS in their last 10 December games and 4-0 ATS in their last four games against the NFC. The Giants are 3-1-1 in their last five games against the NFC.
The Bears have allowed just 15.4 points per game during their current five game winning streak. On the other hand, the Giants have been held to 18 or fewer points in four out of their five home games this season. Chicago has covered 7 out of their last 9 games when favored by at least three points. Prediction: Bears -4.5
The total has gone over in 6 out of the last 8 games of the Chicago Bears. The total has also gone over in 3 out of the last 5 road games played by Chicago. The under is 12-6 in the Giants’ last 18 games played and the under is also 12-5 in the last 17 home games of New York. Against each other, the total has gone over in 9 out of the last 13 games played by the Bears and Giants. The total has also gone over in 4 out of the last five games between these two teams in New York.
The Bears have one of the best defenses in the NFL but despite that, they lean towards the over as the total has gone over in seven out of their 11 games this season. The over is also 6-2 in their last 8 overall with an averaged combined score of 51.2 points. The Giants don’t seem like a good dance partner to hit the over but their offense has picked up in their last four games, averaging 25 points in the month of November. Prediction: Over 45
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