Bills vs. Bears Free Pick
CHICAGO, IL (The Spread) – Non-conference opponents will square off in Chicago today in what could be a high-scoring game between the Bills and Bears at 1:00PM ET.
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetDSI, the Bears are 7-point home favorites over the visiting Bills, while the over/under total is currently sitting at 47 points. Chicago opened as 6.5-point favorites but the spread has been bet up, while the total opened at 49 and has been bet down.
The Bills traded up in May’s draft to nab dynamic receiver Sammy Watkins but the rookie dealt with a ribs injury in preseason and his development could be stunted by a troubling quarterback situation. E.J. Manuel was shaky in preseason and hasn’t looked anything like the francise signal-caller that Buffalo hoped he’d be when it drafted him in the first round a year ago. The defense has also lost linebacker Kiko Alonso to a season-ending knee injury, which is a massive blow.
Equipped with an offense that features Matt Forte, Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery and Jay Cutler, the Bears hope to make a deep run in the postseason this year. A lot of their success depends on not only those offensive players staying healthy, but also the defense improving greatly from where it was a year ago. The team brought in free agents Jared Allen, Lamarr Houston and Willie Young, and drafted Kyle Fuller, Ego Ferguson, Will Sutton and Brock Vereen to improve the defense. If that unit takes shape, then the sky is the limit for the Bears this season.
NFL FREE PICK: Take the over. According to latest NFL trends, the over is 4-0 in the Bears’ last four games in September, 4-0 in their last four games overall and 4-1 in their last five home games. The over is also 9-3 in the Bills’ last 12 games in September and 6-2 in their last eight road games. Chicago should rack up plenty of points against Buffalo’s shaky defense, and bettors should get enough points out of the Bills to watch the combined score go over the total.
2012 NFL WEEK 1 FREE PICK: BILLS/BEARS OVER 47.5
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