Bears vs. Bengals Prediction
Will Sunday’s matchup between the Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals turn into a defensive struggle when the teams meet at 1:00 p.m. ET?
Game Info
Matchup: Bears (3-9) at Bengals (5-7)
TV: FOX, 1:00 p.m. ET
Line: Bengals -6
ODDS: According to oddsmakers from online sports book Bovada.lv, the over/under for Sunday’s game is sitting at 38.5 points, up slightly from the original number of 37. The Bengals, meanwhile, are 6-point home favorites to knock off the Bears, who opened as 6-point road underdogs.
PUBLIC BETTING: As of this writing, the Bengals are receiving 68% of the tickets at the betting window and 74% of the money.
INJURY REPORT: Both of these teams are severely banged-up. For the Bears, Kyle Long is out for the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury. Safety Adrian Amos is also doubtful for Sunday because of a hamstring injury and linebacker Pernell McPhee is questionable with a shoulder ailment. Jerrell Freeman (chest), Willie Young (triceps) and Leonard Floyd (leg) are all out.
On the other side, Tyler Eifert is out for the year with a back injury and receiver John Ross has also been shut down due to a shoulder problem. Linebacker Vontaze Burfict is questionable after being carted off the field Monday night on a stretch following a hit to the head from Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. Cornerback Darqueze Dennard (knee), safety Shawn Williams, running back Joe Mix (shoulder) and linebacker Vincent Rey (hamstring) are all questionable for Cincinnati.
OUR PREDICTION: Cincinnati’s defensive front seven is likely to give Chicago rookie quarterback Mitchell Trubisky some potential problems. Trubisky has a 5-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio of his last eight starts as the Bears continue to have all kinds of issues moving the ball. A Chicago receiver has yet to have a 100-yard game and the Bears have rushed for just 76 yards total in their last two games.
Meanwhile, the Bengals are coming off a short week having played on Monday night. They looked great in the first half against the Steelers when they took a 17-3 lead into halftime but were shut down in the second. Even with the Bears down three key defensive players, I still like this to be a low-scoring game.
NFL WEEK 14 OVER/UNDER PREDICTION: BEARS/BENGALS UNDER 38.5