A losing skid will end this Sunday as the San Francisco 49ers, and the Chicago Bears square off in a battle of struggling teams. Here's a breakdown of the 49ers vs Bears game to see who has the edge in this pivotal NFC clash.
San Francisco 49ers enter Week 8 as -3.5 favorites
Things are going from bad to worse for the San Francisco 49ers as they absorbed their fourth consecutive defeat with a 30-18 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday Night Football. After opening the season with two straight victories, the 49ers head into Week 8 with a woeful 2-4 slate. They are now 4.5 games behind leaders Arizona Cardinals in the NFC West standings.
They will look to get their season back on track when they face the injury-plagued Chicago Bears this coming Sunday. For the Niners to end their losing skid, they will need to do a much better job in taking care of the football. The Colts recorded a season-high four takeaways against the 49ers and scored three touchdowns on the ensuing possessions.
Jimmy Garoppolo failed to get it going in Week 7, completing just 16 of 27 passes for 181 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Head coach Kyle Shanahan is still sticking with Garoppolo to be the 49ers' starting QB against Chicago despite those awful numbers.
Trey Lance will be available to play situationally against the Bears, though, after missing last week's game due to a sprained left knee. In his start against the Cardinals, he suffered the injury, passing for 192 yards and rushing for 89 yards in that 17-10 loss.
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Chicago Bears installed as +3.5 underdogs
It has been a rough couple of weeks for the Chicago Bears, whose once-promising season is now unraveling. They suffered their worst loss of the season in Week 7, absorbing a 38-3 beatdown at the hands of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That 35-point defeat comes a week after Chicago lost a key divisional matchup with the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field.
The Bears now trailed the Packers by three games in the NFC North standings heading into Week 8. To make matters worse for the Bears, they will be without one of their key defensive players for the next few weeks, with linebacker Khalil Mack set to go to the injured reserve due to a foot problem.
Mack first sustained that foot injury in Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns and has been playing through the pain ever since. Despite that injury, Mack has produced outstanding numbers as he is ranked seventh in the NFL in sacks this season with six.
"The evaluation of Justin Fields this year does not matter." @danorlovsky7 believes Fields' rookie struggles are not all his fault. pic.twitter.com/XssHxd1H3I
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) October 26, 2021
With Mack sidelined, the pressure is on the Bears' offense to do its fair share of the heavy lifting. The Bears have scored just 17 points in their last two games. It is important for Chicago that Justin Fields gets his game going against the 49ers. Fields struggled mightily against the Bucs, throwing for just 184 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions.
Writer's Prediction
Chicago records an upset win over San Francisco.
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