Chicago Bears (1-3) at Green Bay Packers (4-0) (Sunday, 8:15 pm Eastern – NBC)
07/10/07 12:17 Filed in: NFL
Chicago Bears (1-3) at Green Bay Packers (4-0) (Sunday, 8:15 pm Eastern – NBC)
Opening Line at SBG: Packers -3 , Total 41
Current Line at SBG: Packers -3 (-125), Total 40.5
The surprising Green Bay Packers will look to keep things rolling as they host the defending NFC Champion Chicago Bears on Sunday night. The Packers and Brett Favre are off to a perfect 4-0 start and have been the biggest surprise in the NFL this season. The Bears on the other hand have started off 1-3 and must win Sunday night to avoid falling hopelessly behind the Packers in the NFC North. Early betting has the public taking the favored Packers at Home.
Favre became the NFL's all-time leader in touchdown passes last week as he threw two TD’s in the Packers 23-16 win over Minnesota. With the win the Packers went to 4-0 and along with Dallas are the only two undefeated teams in the NFC. "I'm so glad we won the game. There was so much emphasis on this record and not the game itself," said Favre, "Everyone's like, 'What are you going to do? Are you going to have a big celebration?' Put yourself in my shoes. I want to help this team win. I do not want us to get blindsided by this record and what we're actually here for." The Packers are relying heavily on Favre since they are throwing 68 percent of the time and rank last in the league in rushing. "Our quarterback is making excellent decisions, spreading the ball around to 10 different receivers," coach Mike McCarthy said. "We're doing a lot of positive things in the passing game."
The Bears would like to be doing as well as the Packers but they are not. Chicago went to Brian Griese at quarterback last week in place of Rex Grossman but things did not get any better versus Detroit. Griese was 34-of-52 for 286 yards and two touchdowns, but threw three interceptions. The Bears actually led 13-3 in the fourth quarter but gave up an NFL record 34 points in the fourth quarter. The Bears will need to play much better defense against Green Bay and they will also need to start running the ball. The Bears are 27th in the league with 82.8 rushing yards per game. "When I say we're a running team, (that) we get off the bus running, we need to run the ball more," head coach Lovie Smith said, "We got away from it a little bit, and now when you're 1-3, the first thing you do is look to get back to what you believe in." The Bears offense this season has come mostly from returner Devin Hester who scored his seventh career touchdown on a kick or punt return Sunday. The Bears will look to get him more involved in the offense. "I know I've said that before," Smith said, "But it's becoming more and more obvious that we can't just talk about it, we have to do it. I'll just say that you'll see Devin Hester more on the offensive side of the ball."
Here are the betting statistics for Sunday night’s game. The Bears have won four of the last six meetings between the teams, including three straight at Green Bay. The Bears are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games in October. The Bears are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a road underdog. The Bears are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 vs. the NFC North. The Bears are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Road team is 4-1-1 ATS in the last 6 meetings between the two teams.
The Packers are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Packers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 vs. the NFC. The Packers are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 vs. the NFC North. The Packers are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games in October. The Packers are 8-18-2 ATS in their last 28 home games. The Packers are 3-8-1 ATS in their last 12 games as a home favorite.
The Over is 4-0 in the Bears last 4 games in October. The Over is 4-1-1 in the Bears last 6 vs. the NFC North. The Under is 8-2-2 in the Bears last 12 games as a road underdog. The Over is 18-7-1 in the Bears last 26 games overall. The Under is 41-18-2 in the Bears last 61 games as an underdog.
The Under is 10-3-1 in the Packers last 14 vs. the NFC North. The Under is 5-2 in the Packers last 7 games as a home favorite. The Over is 18-8 in the Packers last 26 games in October.
Opening Line at SBG: Packers -3 , Total 41
Current Line at SBG: Packers -3 (-125), Total 40.5
The surprising Green Bay Packers will look to keep things rolling as they host the defending NFC Champion Chicago Bears on Sunday night. The Packers and Brett Favre are off to a perfect 4-0 start and have been the biggest surprise in the NFL this season. The Bears on the other hand have started off 1-3 and must win Sunday night to avoid falling hopelessly behind the Packers in the NFC North. Early betting has the public taking the favored Packers at Home.
Favre became the NFL's all-time leader in touchdown passes last week as he threw two TD’s in the Packers 23-16 win over Minnesota. With the win the Packers went to 4-0 and along with Dallas are the only two undefeated teams in the NFC. "I'm so glad we won the game. There was so much emphasis on this record and not the game itself," said Favre, "Everyone's like, 'What are you going to do? Are you going to have a big celebration?' Put yourself in my shoes. I want to help this team win. I do not want us to get blindsided by this record and what we're actually here for." The Packers are relying heavily on Favre since they are throwing 68 percent of the time and rank last in the league in rushing. "Our quarterback is making excellent decisions, spreading the ball around to 10 different receivers," coach Mike McCarthy said. "We're doing a lot of positive things in the passing game."
The Bears would like to be doing as well as the Packers but they are not. Chicago went to Brian Griese at quarterback last week in place of Rex Grossman but things did not get any better versus Detroit. Griese was 34-of-52 for 286 yards and two touchdowns, but threw three interceptions. The Bears actually led 13-3 in the fourth quarter but gave up an NFL record 34 points in the fourth quarter. The Bears will need to play much better defense against Green Bay and they will also need to start running the ball. The Bears are 27th in the league with 82.8 rushing yards per game. "When I say we're a running team, (that) we get off the bus running, we need to run the ball more," head coach Lovie Smith said, "We got away from it a little bit, and now when you're 1-3, the first thing you do is look to get back to what you believe in." The Bears offense this season has come mostly from returner Devin Hester who scored his seventh career touchdown on a kick or punt return Sunday. The Bears will look to get him more involved in the offense. "I know I've said that before," Smith said, "But it's becoming more and more obvious that we can't just talk about it, we have to do it. I'll just say that you'll see Devin Hester more on the offensive side of the ball."
Here are the betting statistics for Sunday night’s game. The Bears have won four of the last six meetings between the teams, including three straight at Green Bay. The Bears are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games in October. The Bears are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a road underdog. The Bears are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 vs. the NFC North. The Bears are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Road team is 4-1-1 ATS in the last 6 meetings between the two teams.
The Packers are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Packers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 vs. the NFC. The Packers are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 vs. the NFC North. The Packers are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games in October. The Packers are 8-18-2 ATS in their last 28 home games. The Packers are 3-8-1 ATS in their last 12 games as a home favorite.
The Over is 4-0 in the Bears last 4 games in October. The Over is 4-1-1 in the Bears last 6 vs. the NFC North. The Under is 8-2-2 in the Bears last 12 games as a road underdog. The Over is 18-7-1 in the Bears last 26 games overall. The Under is 41-18-2 in the Bears last 61 games as an underdog.
The Under is 10-3-1 in the Packers last 14 vs. the NFC North. The Under is 5-2 in the Packers last 7 games as a home favorite. The Over is 18-8 in the Packers last 26 games in October.