MNF – Bears vs Lions Week 5 Gambling Preview
How about them Detroit Lions? Few would have projected that the only team to match the perfect record of the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers through the first four games of the season would be Detroit, but heading in to their return to Monday Night Football against their division rival Chicago Bears, that is exactly how the story has played out.
Venue/Stadium: Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
Time/Date: Monday October 10, 2011 – 8:30 PM ET
NFL Odds from TheGreek
Moneyline: Lions -240
Spread (ATS): Lions -5
Over/Under: 47.5
The Lions have shown incredible resiliency and determination through four wins to open the year, but nobody in the Motor City is looking too far ahead just yet.
Expectations remain tempered in Detroit, even though there is a definitive optimism that has enveloped the team since the offseason.
The Lions have turned 20-point halftime deficits in to improbable victories in consecutive weeks, but will look to do things the easy way as they return home after winning three of four on the road.
After being talked down by Dallas Cowboys’ defensive coordinator Rex Ryan and a select few in the media leading in to week four, wide receiver Calvin Johnson delivered one of the most incredible performances of the season eight catches for 96 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning score.
Johnson will continue to play a pivotal role as the offense continues to develop with quarterback Matt Stafford leading the way, and they will face another tough test this week against a talented Chicago defense. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The schedule hasn’t been kind to the Bears early on this season as three of the first four teams they have faced were among the six teams that represented the NFC in the postseason a year ago.
Chicago has split its first four games to remain on contention behind the Lions and Packers, but these divisional games will be crucial if they want to make the postseason, and they have already lost once to Green Bay.
Quarterback Jay Cutler was able to stand in the pocket long enough to deliver a solid performance in Sunday’s win over the Carolina Panthers, and he got some help from the special teams with Devin Hester setting the record for punt return touchdowns.
Still, this franchise relies heavily on the play of its defense, which ranks in the bottom third of the NFL in both run and pass situations.
The Bears’ next two games are against NFC North rivals and while they should be able to compete with the Minnesota Vikings, at this point they just haven’t shown enough to think they can slow down the powerful Lions.
NFL Betting Pick: Lions
