The Bears didn’t start the season the way they would’ve liked against the Rams, especially on the defensive side of the ball. They failed to take the ball away, made several mental errors and ultimately gave up 34 points. On offense, things weren’t much better. The team did a good job of moving the ball, but stalled out and couldn’t convert on four different 4th-down attempts. In the end, they only scored 14 points. Despite all that, oddsmakers favor the Bears over their Week 2 opponent, the Bengals (as of Wednesday evening). However when looking across the NFL media landscape, many experts like Cincinnati as a popular upset pick. Here’s how all the predictions shake out, with their year-to-date pick records in parentheses, via NFL Pick Watch.
John Breech, CBS Sports (10-6)
Being down to your third-string left tackle is like stripping the brakes off your car and then trying to drive straight down a mountain: You hope you're never stuck in that situation because there's no way it's going to end well.
The Bengals have already beat up on one NFC North team this season and the prediction here is that they win another thriller.
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Pick: Bengals 20, Bears 17
Pete Prisco, CBS Sports (6-10)
The Bengals did some good things in beating the Vikings last week, while the Bears were awful. How long can they stay with Andy Dalton? He gets a chance against his former team here, and I think he will play much better than he did a week ago. I think the Bears defense will get the better of the Bengals and Joe Burrow as well. Chicago bounces back.
NFL
Pick: Bears 23, Bengals 17
Bill Bender, Sporting News (10-6)
The Bengals still have work to do, but there is a belief around No. 1 pick Joe Burrow that showed in the overtime victory against the Vikings. Chicago needs to move Justin Fields from role player to starter to start the same chain reaction. Instead, Burrow will engage in a duel with former Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton. Ja'Marr Chase plays hero again, and the Bengals are the early surprise 2-0 team.
Pick: Bengals 26, Bears 23
Alex Kay, Forbes
Pick: Bengals +3.5
Domique Foxworth, ESPN (10-6)
Pick: Bengals
Seth Wickersham, ESPN (10-6)
Pick: Bengals
Mike Clay, ESPN (6-10)
Pick: Bears
Dan Graziano, ESPN (9-7)
Pick: Bengals
Rob Ninkovich, ESPN (10-6)
Pick: Bengals