Cincinnati Bengals (0-0 SU, 0-0 ATS) vs. Chicago Bears (0-0 SU, 0-0 ATS)
Week 1 NFL
Date/Time: Sunday, September 8, 2013 at 1PM EST
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
TV: CBS
By Loot, NFL Football Handicapper, Lootmeister.com
Point Spread: Cin +3/Chi -3
Over/Under Total: 45
The Bengals and the Bears each open up their 2013 regular season at Soldier Field in what should be a good game between a pair of 10-win teams from last season. Cincinnati is coming off consecutive playoff seasons and naturally looks to carry that to another level, after a pair of wild card round defeats to the Texans. Chicago, with new head coach Marc Trestman, looks to kick off a new era of success.
Chicago has achieved a level of invisibility in the offseason that might lead some people to rule them out prematurely. This is still a team with a really good defense. Trestman is an offensively-minded head coach, but that doesn’t mean the defense will stop playing well. Trestman had a lot of NFL assistant coaching gigs prior to becoming a head coach in the Canadian League for the past 5 years. He should help this Chicago offense score more points, which was at times a problem in 2012.
Chicago is being overlooked for a team coming off a 10-win season that boasts of the third-ranked defense. They lost Brian Urlacher and that hurts. Look for new defensive coordinator Mel Tucker to keep this unit moving forward and make sure the focus won’t solely be on improving the offense. And on that side of the ball, they have Jay Cutler playing in the last year of a contract with no new deal on the table. That should light a fire under him. He has tools. Brandon Marshall is a top receiver coming off a giant year who has always gelled with Cutler going to back the their Denver days. And RB Matt Forte, a bit neglected by Lovie Smith, should explode in this system. If the defense can keep pace from last year and the offense can improve on their number-28 ranking, they could conceivably improve on last season’s 10 wins.
That offense will have to be ready to roll facing a tough Cincinnati team that is coming into its own. The D-line might be the best in the NFL, anchored by the double-digit sack totals of Gino Atkins and Michael Johnson, with guys like draft-pick Marcus Hunt and Carlos Dunlap looking to add a lot of production. It’s a deep and ultra-talented unit. At linebacker, they have game changers like Vontaze Burfict, who led the team in tackles last season as an undrafted free agent. If there is an issue on “D,” it is the secondary. Leon Hall is a solid corner and Pacman Jones is a good nickel guy, but they need more. They also have a good safety in George Nelson, but Taylor Mays struggles in coverage, so maybe rookie Shawn Williams can help.
The Cinci “D” should have their act together. Any hopes for a Cincinnati renaissance will probably boil down to the development of QB Andy Dalton. He is coming along well, leading the Bengals to the playoffs in his first two seasons, so we can’t be too hard on him. You’d like to see him make more key throws, but no one is perfect. He has a ton of tools in the passing game, with star receiver AJ Green leading the way. He has a couple good slot guys in their second year in Marvin Jones and Mohamed Sanu. TE Jermaine Gresham quietly gained over 700 yards and with incoming first-rounder Tyler Eifert, that gives them perhaps the best tight end duo in the conference. The run game should also see an upgrade with rookie Giovani Bernard. There are no excuses for Dalton to not succeed in this offense.
Some things to keep an eye on for Cincinnati are their offensive line in the pass protection department, with Dalton getting sacked 46 times in 2012. And there is some unproven talent at running back and in the secondary. For Chicago, the O-line is iffy, they have no dependable tight ends, though the signing of Martellus Bennett should help, and there are depth concerns in the secondary
Cutler, long guilty of holding onto the ball for too long, better have that part of his act together facing this Cinci pass rush. Not that Cutler will be the only player tested, as Dalton catches a tough assignment in the season opener facing this Chicago “D.” The Bears’ defense, especially at home, should be difficult.
Each team won 10 games last season, but it seems like Cincinnati is at least more confident in where they are heading. The Bears fired their coach and didn’t offer their QB an extension. It gives the impression that the Bengals are more on-course than the Bears. One can’t be so sure. The Bears have done nothing to really justify people being down on them, while not every team that shows signs of improvement like the Bengals is guaranteed to take that next step up the ladder. In this game, there are certainly some matchup issues for the Bears, particularly how they will handle the brutal Bengals front 7 on “D.” At the same time, regardless of how little attention the Bears are getting, going into Soldier Field is still no picnic.
Loot's Pick to Cover the Point Spread: I'm betting the Chicago Bears and laying the 3 points.
