The Carolina Panthers head to Soldier Field for a game against the Chicago Bears this Sunday afternoon. The Panthers, led by rookie sensation Cam Newton, picked up their first win of the season last week, beating Jacksonville 16-10. The Bears have dropped two in a row, losing to the Saints and Packers in consecutive weeks.
The Bears opened as a 6 ½ point home favorite. Betting has moved the line from anywhere between 6 and 7 points, depending upon the book. Carolina has been great against the spread this year, moving to 3-0 after last week. The Bears, on the other hand, are only 1-2 ats. That being so, consider grabbing a touchdown here and backing a young, inspired team looking for a signature road win.
One storyline in this game is Carolina head coach Ron Rivera going back to Chicago. Rivera, the longtime Bears linebacker and member of the 1985 championship team, used to be defensive coordinator for Chicago. In fact, he oversaw the defense on the Bears’ 2006 team that made it to the Super Bowl.
“I’m not going to downplay it,” Rivera said. “Some people would say it’s just another game; no it’s not. They’re all big, but this has a little personal meaning for me because it’s Chicago. It’s a great city with a great organization … It’ll be fun. I look forward to coming up there.”
The Panthers have another former Bears player who could make a big difference in Sunday’s game. Greg Olsen was traded from the Bears to the Panthers in the shortened offseason for a third round draft pick. Apparently Olsen was expendable because the Bears wanted a better blocking tight end. That should provide extra motivation for Olsen come game time.
It’s funny that the Bears were looking for better blocking because they certainly haven’t found it. Chicago currently ranks 31st with 53.7 rushing yards a game and are tied for the most sacks allowed with 14. Last week against the Packers at home, Chicago mustered just 13 yards on 12 carries. Matt Forte, the game changing speedster, was bottled up all day and ended up with just 2 yards on 9 carries. The Bears expect guard Lance Louis to be available for Saturday’s game, but tackle Gabe Carimi is out indefinitely. Additionally, Major Wright, Chris Harris, and Marion Barber are all expected to play for Chicago.
The combination of Cam Newton to Steve Smith has been very productive for Carolina. Both Newton and Smith rank third in terms of yards for quarterbacks and receivers. Carolina could get a big boost if their running game became more relevant. Neither DeAngelo Williams nor Jonathan Stewart has gotten on track this season. Each back is tremendously talented, and I wonder if Newton’s play has actually worked to diminish Carolina’s ground game. At any rate, the Panthers need to do a better job of complimenting Newton and Smith with at least a serviceable rushing attack.
This will be a telling game for both teams. Chicago started the season strong against Atlanta, but regressed against New Orleans and Green Bay. Part of the problem could be the Bears’ competition – the Falcons, Saints, and Packers all made the playoffs last season. Carolina has outperformed expectations each week, and at this point I’m not afraid to jump on their bandwagon, at least with respect to covering the spread. I’m not saying they’ll leave Chicago with a win (though it wouldn’t surprise me). But I do think that between their effort and the Bears recent troubles, Carolina has an excellent chance of covering the spread. See if you can get 7 points at some online sportsbooks NFL odds. Good luck!
