Los Angeles Chargers at Chicago Bears Odds & Game Pick
Two disappointing teams, both SU and ATS, face off Sunday in what feels like a must-win for each. The Bears are coming off an embarrassing home loss to the New Orleans Saints, while the Chargers are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Tennessee Titans, a game in which they fumbled on the one-yard line with just seconds remaining.
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Details
- Opening Lines: FanDuel had the odds open as Bears -5.5; O/U 40.5. The spread has moved 1.5 points toward the Chargers.
- Current Line: Bears -4
- O/U: 40
- Location: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
- Start Time: 1:00 pm ET
- Television: FOX
- Last Meeting: November 9, 2015 – The Bears defeated the Chargers 22-19 in San Diego.
View consensus picks from 100+ experts for the Chargers at Bears >>
Overview
Nothing has gone right for the Los Angeles Chargers this season, a fact that was only amplified by the disaster at the goal line last week. The Chargers ran three plays from within the one-yard line, yet walked away with zero points after Melvin Gordon fumbled to give the Titans the 23-20 win and send the Chargers to 2-5. This was a team that expected to compete for the Super Bowl this year, and now they look like they might be a long-shot to go .500.
Los Angeles has played just one game all season that wasn’t decided by six or fewer points, which makes them a particularly difficult team to pick ATS. They’ve only covered once all season but have been in situations where they could have, and in many cases should have, found a way to cover for a lot of angry bettors. The offense has been a disaster whether they have Melvin Gordon or not, and things got much worse this week when Forrest Lamp was put on IR with a broken leg.
The Bears are coming back down to earth after their outstanding 12-4 season in 2018. They trailed the New Orleans Saints 36-10 late in the fourth quarter. The Saints are great this year, but this was a home game for the Bears against an offense that was without their starting quarterback, running back, and tight end. The defense, which was thought to be a strength coming into the season, has struggled the last two weeks and desperately needs to get things right to make up for a weak offense.
Speaking of that offense, whether it’s Mitchell Trubisky or Chase Daniel at the helm, the Bears are having trouble putting points on the board. They have scored over 30 points only once all season, and that was against the Redskins. Last week they had just 120 yards before two late fourth-quarter touchdown drives when the game was already far out of reach. The Bears are a team that wants to run the ball, but they had only 17 yards against the Saints. The Chargers are giving up 117 yards per game on the ground.
Trends
- The Chargers are 1-5-1 ATS this season.
- The Bears are 2-4 ATS this season.
- The total has gone under in five of the Chargers’ last six games.
- The total has gone under in eight of the Bears’ last 11 games.
- The Chargers are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 road games.
- The Bears are 4-1 SU in their last five home games against the Chargers.
- The total has gone under in seven of Chicago’s last eight games against the AFC West.
Prop Bet
Chargers under 17.5 points (-118)
This is a tough play, but the Chargers’ offense has not looked sound all season. A lot of people thought the shape of the offense would change once Melvin Gordon was back in the starting lineup, but it may have actually gotten worse. The Chargers should be able to keep this game close, but it will mainly be with their defense. Getting this under above the key number of 17 feels like too good of a bet to pass up.
Bottom Line
It’s impossible to trust either of these teams after the start they’ve had to the 2019 season. The Chargers were a popular Super Bowl pick, while the Bears were the defending NFC North champions, and yet neither team has performed up to expectations. Both offenses have really struggled this season, and while some will argue that has to do with playing good defenses, I disagree. Mitchell Trubisky has regressed, and Philip Rivers looks like a shell of his former self. After being embarrassed by the Saints last week, the Bears’ defense is going to come out fired up for this contest. The Chargers’ defense isn’t as good, but against a weak Bears’ offense, they should be able to force a lot of punts.
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Check out our other NFL Sports Betting Guides for Week 8
Philadelphia Eagles at Buffalo Bills (-2)
Cincinnati Bengals at Los Angeles Rams (-11.5)
New York Jets at Jacksonville Jaguars (-6)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Tennessee Titans (-2.5)
Seattle Seahawks at Atlanta Falcons (+7)
New York Giants at Detroit Lions (-6)
Denver Broncos at Indianapolis Colts (-4.5)
Oakland Raiders at Houston Texans (-6.5)
Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints (-10.5)
Cleveland Browns at New England Patriots (-11)
Carolina Panthers at San Francisco 49ers (-5)
Green Bay Packers at Kansas City Chiefs (+4.5)
Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh Steelers (-14)
Philip Wood is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Philip, check out his archive and follow him @Phil_Wood_Jr.