Winner goes 3-1: Bears vs. Giants Prediction |
Week four marks the unofficial quarter mark of the NFL season, and the Bears are in an excellent position right now. Sporting a 2-1 record despite not playing all that well, the Bears have a chance to get to 3-1 and remain tied for the division lead in the NFC North. Depending on what happens with the Vikings and Packers, they could be in first place all by themselves, but for that to happen, they need to take care of business first.
That starts with disposing of the New York Giants, who are 2-1 in their own right and are coming off a loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night. Like the Bears, the Giants haven't looked great this season, but they did manage to beat the Titans in week one on the road, so there is that. Daniel Jones is still Daniel Jones, and the Giants lost their best receiver to a torn ACL. Things are looking good for Chicago this week, but now it is time for them to take care of business. Here are some things to watch for in the matchup:
When he was drafted now five years ago, Barkley was considered a generational talent at the RB position. His pure speed, mixed with power and agility, made him a nightmare to tackle, and that was on full display during his rookie season. Take away his rookie season, and things have been a struggle for him as injuries have slowly derailed his career. The Bears witnessed that in 2020 firsthand when he tore his ACL early in the first half and was lost for the year. Barkley then dealt with several injuries last season and entered the year as a big question mark. Needless to say, he has answered those question marks thus far, as Barkley looks excellent so far. Not only does he look great, but he is starting to look like the RB during his rookie season, maybe even a little better. That is scary to think about, and if the Bears want to win this game, they need to slow him down and force Jones to beat them.
It is funny how things work out, isn't it? When the Bears were actively looking for a new head coach, Giants head Coach, Brian Daboll was on their list, only to see him join Joe Shoen in New York. That forced the Bears to return to the drawing board, where they selected Matt Eberflus to take over. In what will be a matchup of two drastically different coaching styles, both the Bears and Giants are off to great starts and are both sitting at 2-1. When you look at who leads the NFC East in Philadelphia and the NFC North in the Vikings, falling more than a game behind either of these teams is not good, even early in the season. These are the games fans live for as they see what coach will one up the other. Ultimately it could come down to who has the better playbook, which has not looked like the Bears so far.
Through three weeks, the Bears offensive line has been an anomaly and not in a good way. On the one hand, you have the worst passing offense in the NFL, which directly results from the offensive line ranked 27th in pass protection. On the other hand, you have a rushing attack that ranks in the top five as the Bears offensive line is 6th best against the run. Even when David Montgomery went down with an injury last week, Herbert was forced to step up, and the Bears rushing attack didn't miss a beat. Herbert finished with a career-high 153 yards and two scores as he was running with a purpose. Expected to be the starter not only this week, but for the next several weeks, this is the chance Herbert has been waiting for. Montgomery is in a contract year, and his days in Chicago could be over after this season with no talks of a contract extension. The reason is that the Bears feel like Herbert could be the guy to replace Montgomery, and now would be a great time to show that.
This will be another very ugly game, as most of the Bears games have been this season. You have an offense that continues to struggle, and they are facing off against a QB prone to making many mistakes. Add that to another team that hasn't looked great yet, and this has the making of another slugfest that could go the full 60 minutes. From a talent side of things, I do think the Bears have more talent at the skill positions, but they may not have the same depth as the Giants do across the board. Coaching, you have to give the Giants the slight edge, as Daboll has been impressive in what he has done with the roster so far. Regardless, I like the Bears getting it done on the road as they go to New York and come away 20-14 victors.The resurgence of Saquon Barkley
The battle of rookie head coaches
Khalil Herbert encore
Prediction: BEAR DOWN
