Monday Night Football – Bears vs Cowboys Betting
Headline: Unflattering 2-1 Teams Meet on Monday Night – Bears at Cowboys
Two teams that had lofty expectations heading into the 2012 NFL season meet on Monday Night Football with their eyes on a 3-1 record and top spot in their division.
Chicago Bears (2-1) vs. Dallas Cowboys (2-1)
Date/Time: Monday, October 1, 2012, 8:30 PM ET
Venue: Cowboys Stadium
Broadcast: ESPN
Beats vs. Cowboys Betting Lines from Bovada
Spread: Cowboys -3 1/2 (-115)
Moneyline: Bears +175: Cowboys -205
Over/Under: 41 1/2 points
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Both teams have looked underwhelming to say the least the last couple of weeks – both won in unimpressive fashion in Week 3 and lost in uber-unimpressive fashion in Week 2.
The Chicago Bears can thank their defense for their 23-6 win in Week 3 against St. Louis.
Many expected a bounce back performance from Jay Cutler after a humiliating Week 2 loss. Instead Cutler managed just 183 yards passing on 17 of 31. He also added an interception for all you trustworthy Fantasy owners.
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He didn’t look great folks but he didn’t have to! Brandon Marshall was better in Week 3 catching 5 balls for 71 yards but it doesn’t appear as though the chemistry is quite there yet between him and his pivot. Michael Bush filled in for an injured Matt Forte last week and gained 55 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown.
Word out of Chicago is that Forte could suit up this week and should give his offense a much needed boost.
As mentioned the Chicago defense has been masterful. They held the Bears in their Week 2 game against the vaunted Packers and they single handedly won their Week 3 game against St. Louis allowing 160 yards of total offense, generating 6 sacks and 2 interceptions (1 for a touchdown).
This unit is playing at a very high level and will be licking their chops at the prospect of facing a Dallas team that made Tampa’s defense look world class in Week 3.
Like the Bears, Dallas can thank their defense for a Week 3 win – the Cowboys offense didn’t do much for the second straight week. Tony Romo has been plagued by some sketchy O-line play just like Jay Cutler.
Romo isn’t helping his team either – he has just one touchdown pass in his last two games and failed to throw a TD last week. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
That means that Dez Bryant, Miles Austin and Jason Witten have been relatively inconsistent – hardly threatening at all! The Dallas running game has been less-than-impressive as well. DeMarco Murray has rushed for a total of 82 yards in the last two games although he did find the end zone last week.
Dallas is far from the offensive juggernaut that we expected this year and now they face the prospect of facing one of the most feared defenses in the land.
Speaking of defense, Dallas has been surprisingly stout along the line and in the secondary. They enter Week 4 #1 in overall defense in the NFL after allowing just 166 yards of total offense to the Bucs last week.
Cornerbacks Morris Claiborne and Brandon Carr have looked like Pro Bowlers and names like DeMarcus Ware and Sean Lee have been sensational up front. Safety Barry Church was lost for the season last week which is a big blow to the Cowboys defense.
Betting Prediction:
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Chicago’s last 10 games on the road
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Chicago’s last 10 games when playing Dallas
- Chicago is 3-5-1 ATS in its last 9 games
- Chicago is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas’s last 5 games
- Dallas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games at home
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas’s last 7 games at home
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Dallas’s last 10 games when playing Chicago
This game has defensive struggle written all over it – it will likely come down to which offense is more effective on Monday. I just don’t trust Jay Cutler and the Chicago offense right now.
When things go bad, they unravel like a role of ribbon once the little piece of scotch tape is removed.
Dallas is the better team right now – period, although they didn’t look like it last week.
The Boys get it done on National TV and send Jay Cutler into another high-profile hissy fit!
Pick: Dallas Cowboys -3 1/2
