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It wasn’t pretty, but the Mitchell Trubisky era earned its first win and the Chicago Bears have plenty of reasons to be excited about the remainder of their season. The No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft hasn’t put up eye-popping numbers since taking over and the offense is still stuck in neutral, but to get a victory when the Bears tried their damndest to give it away says a lot about the character of the club. Trubisky will attempt to stabilize the Bears offense when they host the Carolina Panthers in Week 7.
This matchup in Week 7 of the regular season will take place on Sunday, October 22, 2017, at 1 p.m. ET at Soldier Field.
Opening NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Carolina Panthers -4
Chicago Bears +4
Over/Under 41
Odds Analysis
Carolina has moved into the upper half of the NFC after their strong start and opened as a 4-point favorite to win on the road. The Bears are taking it easy with Trubisky, limiting the offense because of the rookie’s inexperience and because they lack playmakers for him. The Bears are 2-0 ATS in their last two by playing strong defense and that figures to be the case again.
Injury Report
Luke Kuechly – The heart and soul of the defense sustained another concussion in Thursday’s loss to the Eagles and was placed in the protocol for head injuries. Kuechly missed six games last season and has had at least two concussions in the past two years. Expect the Panthers to be overly cautious with Kuechly and there’s a good chance he sits against the Bears. Carolina surrendered all three touchdown passes to Carson Wentz and failed to record a sack after the linebacker left last game.
Fozzy Whitaker – Carolina’s reserve back hasn’t put up big numbers while serving as third fiddle to Jonathan Stewart and Christian McCaffrey, but he has been valuable in his role and on special teams. He left Thursday’s game with an ankle injury and it doesn’t look like he’s coming back any time soon. The depth in the backfield will be tested, especially with top pick McCaffrey not getting much accomplished in the run game.
Player to Watch
Jordan Howard – It’s no secret the Bears lack weapons in the passing game and that makes Howard an important piece for Chicago’s offense. Trubisky did little against the Ravens, throwing only 16 passes for 113 yards while getting sacked four times. His favorite target was tight end Dion Sims, who caught two of the four balls thrown his way. The team’s longest pass play of the season was thrown by the punter on a fake and the Bears have scored twice through the air on trick plays the past two games.
With a game plan designed to protect Trubisky, Howard will get plenty of touches just like he did in Baltimore. He carried the ball 36 times for 167 yards with his longest run of the day coming in overtime to set up the game-winning field goal. Howard also had an overtime game-winner against the Steelers when he had 140 yards on the ground. The Panthers will be weaker in the front seven if Kuechly doesn’t play and the Bears will try and take advantage with Howard carrying the load.
Free ATS Pick
While most of the attention in Chicago has been focused on the quarterback position, Vic Fangio’s defense has been stellar. The group hounded Joe Flacco last week and has played well enough for the Bears to have a better record, but the failure of the offense has been costly in that area. Newton had a hard time against the Eagles front last week and he’ll see similar schemes from a Bears front that is athletic and quick.
The Bears might be bold enough to open the playbook with Kuechly out of the lineup, but if Howard can continue to produce, now that he’s apparently over the shoulder injury that hampered him during training camp, he’ll get a bulk of the work. Trubisky continues to settle into his role as the starter and with a win under his belt, he should feel good about his team’s chances.
Some unconventional plays worked the past few games for the Bears, but the surprise factor has worn off and it’ll be tough for them to beat the Panthers. They’ve played well enough defensively to keep games close and that will likely be the case in this one. But Carolina has too much on both sides of the ball and few extra days to rest and prepare.
NFL Odds: Panthers 23, Bears 18
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