Chicago Bears NFL Odds After Free Agency Week 1

Chicago Bears NFL Odds After Free Agency Week 1

Written by on March 25, 2020

The Chicago Bears were one of the big disappointments in the NFL last season and they are likely to have a new starting quarterback when Week 1 comes around this year. Both GM Ryan Pace and Coach Matt Nagy are on the hot seat. Here’s an overview of the Chicago Bears and their NFL Odds as it stands.

Chicago Bears NFL Odds After Free Agency Week 1

2019 recap

Chicago won the NFC North in 2018 but just about every facet of the team regressed last year. The team’s Wild-Card hopes ended in a Week 15 loss in Green Bay, 21-13. With the win, Green Bay swept the Bears for the 15th time in the last 26 seasons and the seventh time in 11 seasons. The Packers defeated Chicago 10-3 in the season opener. Green Bay now leads the series 99-95-6.

The Bears finished at 8-8 with a meaningless season-ending 21-19 win in Minnesota to sweep the Vikings, who rested all their key guys with a playoff spot clinched. Eddy Pineiro’s fourth field goal of the game came from 22 yards with 10 seconds left for the win. David Montgomery had 23 carries for 113 yards and a touchdown to cap a strong rookie season and help the Bears beat the Vikings for the fourth consecutive time. Chicago dodged what would have been a fifth losing record in six years.

Chicago Bears offseason moves

Bears GM Ryan Pace made it Job No. 1 to bring in competition for disappointing QB Mitchell Trubisky, whom Pace traded up to select at No. 2 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft – passing on future superstars like Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes. Trubisky finished his third NFL season with 3,138 passing yards, 17 passing touchdowns, and 10 interceptions across 15 games. Trubisky was limited by a shoulder injury, which helps his 228-rushing yardage drop from 2018 to 2019, but he’s just not a franchise quarterback.

So, the team traded a fourth-round pick to acquire Jacksonville’s Nick Foles. The pick, which the Bears received based on a net loss of free agents in 2019, is the 34th selection in the fourth round and 140th in the draft overall. Foles, 31, has appeared in 58 NFL games and compiled a 26-22 record in 48 starts over eight seasons with the Eagles (2012-14, 2017-18), Rams (2015), Chiefs (2016) and Jaguars (2019).

Foles has proven he is a very good backup and playoff quarterback, leading the Eagles to their first Super Bowl title following the 2017 winning and taking game MVP honors. However, he has not been a good regular-season starting QB for the most part. Last year with Jacksonville, he broke his collarbone in Week 1. He returned to action in early November and ended up making four starts, completing 65.8 percent of his passes for 736 yards with three TDs, two interceptions and an 84.6 passer rating.

While Foles provides an immediate upgrade at the quarterback position, it wasn’t exactly the flashy signing people were expecting. The Bears could have waited, for example, until Carolina cut Cam Newton. Or signed Jameis Winston.

Foles has agreed to a restructured contract that allows him to void his deal after either of the next two seasons. The eight-year vet will reunite with QBs coach John DeFilippo, who he previously worked with during Philadelphia’s Super Bowl run and last season in Jacksonville, and coach Matt Nagy, who was Foles’ offensive coordinator in Kansas City.

Chicago got some receiving help as well signing former Pro Bowl tight end Jimmy Graham. He did very little with Aaron Rodgers last year and looks washed up at age 34. He finished the 2019 season with 38 catches for 447 yards and three touchdowns, his lowest across-the-board output since his rookie season in 2010.

The Bears beefed up the defense by signing defensive end Robert Quinn. Since the start of the 2015 season, Quinn has averaged 9 sacks, 10 tackles-for-loss, and 16 quarterback hits per 16 games. Quinn’s stock rose thanks to an offseason trade to the Cowboys that elevated his exposure, moving him from Miami. He then promptly delivered, recording 11.5 sacks, 34 tackles, three passes defended and two forced fumbles in 14 games in 2019. Quinn recorded the third-best pressure rate and disruption rate in the entire NFL (among those with a minimum of 200 pass-rush snaps) at 14 percent and 17.2 percent. In adding Quinn, Chicago released former first-round defensive end Leonard Floyd, who never panned out.

2020 opponents

  • Home: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
  • Away: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Rams, Tennessee Titans.

Chicago Bears odds to win Super Bowl 55

The Bears are +3000 Odds to win the Super Bowl next February in Tampa.