NFL Week 14 Sunday Night Football Betting Preview
December 8th, 2018
In one of the most important matchups of the year, two of the best teams in the NFC clash on Sunday night. The conference leading Los Angeles Rams were supposed to be here, sitting on one loss with a month left in the NFL Regular Season. Unlike the Rams, the Bears weren’t supposed to be close to where they are with an 8-4 record and in control of the NFC North. This meeting makes for a very intriguing NFL Week 14 Sunday Night Football betting breakdown.
L.A. started the season as one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl. So far, the Rams have had only a single bump in the road, a 35-45 loss to the New Orleans Saints. With a month left, LAR looks like the team to beat in the NFC.
No such huge expectations rested on Bears’ players this season. Chicago hired Matt Nagy as their coach and most felt he’d get quarterback Mitch Trubisky to improve, but nobody thought the Bears would go from one of the worst scoring teams in the NFL to one of the best in less than a year.
Will the Rams continue their dominance, or will the Bears show the rest of the league that they’re an elite team?
Now a game ahead of that rival, LAR will look to maintain their excellent play and creep closer to the 1-seed in the NFC Playoffs on Sunday night. It won’t be easy. Los Angeles faces a well-balanced squad on the road.
To win, the Rams must improve from their past few performances where, despite pulling out victories, they’ve struggled to provide excellence on either side of the ball. Outside of the epic clash with Kansas City, the Rams have been skipping by teams that they should be flat out better than. On Dec. 9, they face a team closer to their level.
Chicago's Mitchell Trubisky transforms the Bears from an average team to a legitimate championship contender. He's a viable starter in the NFL and - more than that - he has turned in to a true engine that drives the Chicago offense. The special teams and defense are already elite. Trubisky pushes them over the edge. How he plays upon return is a real concern, but the fact remains that the Rams are up against it more than most of the public wants to admit.
To maintain the 1-game edge over the Saints, the Rams must step it up in a big way.
Chicago could be up to the challenge, though. The Bears are one of the few teams in the NFL that ranks in the Top 5 in both points scored per and points allowed per. That makes the Bears one of the toughest teams to play in the league because they can hurt you in so many ways. They're also very good at picking their spots on offense, and don't mind engaging in a bit of a grind.
The home team might not look like they stand much chance to beat the L.A. Rams. Stats and what they’ve done on the field say otherwise.
The Rams are 5-6-1 ATS. 3-of-5 ATS wins happened in their first 3 games, which means they’ve gone 2-6-1 ATS in their last 8. Other trends point to a Bears cover. The Rams are 0-3-1 ATS in their last 4 while the Bears are 6-0-1 ATS in their last 7 versus a team with a winning road record and 15-5-1 ATS in their last 21 at home.
Although Chicago looks like a great team to back against the spread, the real value might be on the moneyline. The Bears are good enough to beat the Rams straight up. This is especially true because quarterback Mitch Trubisky has been upgraded to probable. If Trubisky plays, I'm all over the Chicago Bears. If he doesn't..
Week 14 Sunday Night Football Betting Free Pick: Bears +135
L.A. started the season as one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl. So far, the Rams have had only a single bump in the road, a 35-45 loss to the New Orleans Saints. With a month left, LAR looks like the team to beat in the NFC.
No such huge expectations rested on Bears’ players this season. Chicago hired Matt Nagy as their coach and most felt he’d get quarterback Mitch Trubisky to improve, but nobody thought the Bears would go from one of the worst scoring teams in the NFL to one of the best in less than a year.
Will the Rams continue their dominance, or will the Bears show the rest of the league that they’re an elite team?
NFL WEEK 14 SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL BETTING L.A. Rams at Chicago Bears Sunday, December 9th – Soldier Field – 8:20pm ET Odds: Rams -3 (51.5)
Rams Look to Inch Closer to Homefield Advantage
After the 35-45 loss to the New Orleans Saints, the Rams and their fans had to feel that it was going to take something big for them to wrestle away homefield advantage. That 'something' happened in Week 13 when the Dallas Cowboys upset favored New Orleans.Now a game ahead of that rival, LAR will look to maintain their excellent play and creep closer to the 1-seed in the NFC Playoffs on Sunday night. It won’t be easy. Los Angeles faces a well-balanced squad on the road.
To win, the Rams must improve from their past few performances where, despite pulling out victories, they’ve struggled to provide excellence on either side of the ball. Outside of the epic clash with Kansas City, the Rams have been skipping by teams that they should be flat out better than. On Dec. 9, they face a team closer to their level.
Chicago's Mitchell Trubisky transforms the Bears from an average team to a legitimate championship contender. He's a viable starter in the NFL and - more than that - he has turned in to a true engine that drives the Chicago offense. The special teams and defense are already elite. Trubisky pushes them over the edge. How he plays upon return is a real concern, but the fact remains that the Rams are up against it more than most of the public wants to admit.
To maintain the 1-game edge over the Saints, the Rams must step it up in a big way.
Bears Face Biggest Test of the Season
Chicago has a great record, but more than a few football fans question the strength of schedule. Victories over the Jets, Bills, Cardinals, and two wins against Detroit don't compare to beating a team like the Los Angeles Rams.Chicago could be up to the challenge, though. The Bears are one of the few teams in the NFL that ranks in the Top 5 in both points scored per and points allowed per. That makes the Bears one of the toughest teams to play in the league because they can hurt you in so many ways. They're also very good at picking their spots on offense, and don't mind engaging in a bit of a grind.
The home team might not look like they stand much chance to beat the L.A. Rams. Stats and what they’ve done on the field say otherwise.
Week 14 Sunday Night Football Betting Analysis
By a massive margin, NFL handicappers are all over the Rams to beat the -4.0 point spread, but, LAR hasn’t covered many spreads this season.The Rams are 5-6-1 ATS. 3-of-5 ATS wins happened in their first 3 games, which means they’ve gone 2-6-1 ATS in their last 8. Other trends point to a Bears cover. The Rams are 0-3-1 ATS in their last 4 while the Bears are 6-0-1 ATS in their last 7 versus a team with a winning road record and 15-5-1 ATS in their last 21 at home.
Although Chicago looks like a great team to back against the spread, the real value might be on the moneyline. The Bears are good enough to beat the Rams straight up. This is especially true because quarterback Mitch Trubisky has been upgraded to probable. If Trubisky plays, I'm all over the Chicago Bears. If he doesn't..
Week 14 Sunday Night Football Betting Free Pick: Bears +135
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