BEST LINE: Pinnacle +7 +100

Remember when the Bears not only “played” defense, they actually embodied it? Honestly, if you slap some Cream sickle uniforms on these tackle dummies, one could swear that it was the 70’s Buccaneers out there most weeks and this is a team playing for the playoffs?! We played against the Bears when they were a 5½-point choice over the Buccaneers last week and we’re still trying to figure out how we lost that game. We’re not close to being sold on the Bears because they are weak both mentally and physically. Jay Cutler has a penchant for committing turnovers and the play calling is certainly curious. Chicago has a strong RB in Matt Forte (averaging 4.2 yards per carry) yet they abandon the running game almost as soon as the game starts. That’s what you get when you have an ex-CFL coach calling the shots. Cutler leads the league in giveaways. The Bears are 3-10 during Marc Trestman's tenure when they finish on the negative side of the turnover margin and 1-4 when the turnover margin is equal. That said, Detroit isn’t looking so pretty lately either.

Losing in Arizona says that the Lions would have problems in the playoffs and getting decimated in New England says maybe they do not even belong in the playoffs. Matthew Stafford has been off all year. After their Week 1, 35-14 blowout win over the Giants, it looked like Stafford and company were in a big offensive year but it has been nothing but regression since. In fact, the Lions have not scored more than 24 points in any game since Week 1 and have been held to 17 points or less five times. That includes games against New Orleans and Atlanta, two defenses that can’t stop anyone. Maybe the Lions turn it up this week against another bad defense but do you really want to spot 7 points with a team that has had this much trouble scoring points? Lions Coach Jim Caldwell has always been known for his conservative approach (you can never be too careful, huh Jimmy) and Detroit has not responded. When the Lions win, they win by small margins. They have won by more than 7 points just one time since Week 3 and that came against the brutal Vikings. Furthermore, Detroit goes from a 7½-point pooch in New England to a 7-point favorite this week, which is a swing of 14½-points in one week. That’s too much. We saw a similar scenario last week when the Redskins went from a 7-point favorite against Tampa two weeks to a 9½-point dog in San Fran last week and covered easily. You would have to go very deep into the archives (probably two decades or thereabouts) to find the last time the Lions were favored by this much over the Bears because it hasn’t been warranted for a very long time. It’s not warranted here either.