Game Time:  1:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 2nd, 2022

Venue: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

Where to Watch:  CBS

 

FanDuel: point spread: NL

BetMGM: Bears -6; O/U 38 points

Caesars: Bears -6; O/U 37.5 points

 

Giants: 4-11, last place NFC East

Bears: 5-10, 3rd place NFC North

A matchup of opponents that will not make the playoffs under any mathematical circumstance over the last two games.  The Giants are the bad news bears and the Bears are the bad news bears, but if there is gonna be a surprise coming together and a happy ending complete with winning the big game… It'll have to be next year.  Or the year after.  Or the year after. The betting opportunity here is all about figuring out which team is really worse and does that team merit the point spread where it is at now?  The Over/Under is a tricky 37-38 points across the sportsbooks… that seems low but then neither of these teams are in the top 25 in the NFL in scoring… taking into account there are only 32 teams… This is a game of drastically inept offenses.

The New York Giants have only won four games this season so far.. Against the New Orleans Saints, the Carolina Panthers, the Las Vegas Raiders, and the Philadelphia Eagles.  In all those wins they were playing teams undergoing serious dysfunction.  Quarterback insecurity, injured running backs, Coaching firings and changes and scandal, young players facing drastic off-field issues, and the Eagles.  The Giants are on a four game losing streak.  On Monday December 20th Quarterback Daniel Jones went on the injured reserve with a neck injury and backup Jake Fromme has taken over.  Giants fans don’t miss Daniel Jones. He may lead the team in passing yards but every starting quarterback leads their team in passing yards.  The Daniel Jones experiment needs to be done and it is most likely that they will not play him again if he is cleared to play before the last game.  His selection with the #6 pick in the 2019 draft out of Duke was confusing and simply hasn’t worked.  Mr. Jones is a turnover machine.  He fumbles when sacked and throws interceptions when pressured.  Some say he wasn’t given the opportunity to develop as the Giants are below average at every unit on the field… that his 6’5, 221, size was tantalizing.  The truth is the Giants reached for him in the draft.  Maybe a Duke player in the first round is best left to basketball.  Another glaring problem the Giants have is running back Saquon Barkley is not as explosive or productive as his first few seasons.  Saquon was taken 2nd overall in round 1 in 2018 of the NFL draft.  That pick was also a reach.  Every team has begun to recognize that running backs have a short shelf life and shouldn’t be taken with top picks.  All sign posts point to a rebuild from the studs up.  It would behoove the Giants to simply trade back in any draft where they want to make a splash.  Build the team first, 0-line, D-line, then QB or RB when you are good enough to not destroy them.

The Bears are at risk of being the Giants.  They are only 1 win ahead. They have beaten the Cincinnati Bengals, the Detroit Lions, the Las Vegas Raiders, the Detroit Lions again, and the Seattle Seahawks… another big batch of dysfunction.  There should be a rule that if you beat the Detroit Lions twice it should only count as 1 win.  The Bengals are the only good team on that list, but if you remember Joe Burrow was still working his rust off from injury that game while the Bears coach Matt Nagy had decided not to play their rookie quarterback early.  Instead they got that win with veteran Andy Dalton under center.  Who could have imagined an 11 year veteran quarterback who bounced around the league the last few years would get injured? A guy that has lost games for multiple teams over a decade should have been great?  Kidding aside, the Bears fans were booing Matt Nagy for not playing rookie QB Justin Fields from the outset.  They shouldn’t have… he doesn’t seem ready.  QB Justin Fields is the starter now when healthy.  Right now he is not.  Justin is on the injured reserve list with an ankle injury and last game's starter was Super Bowl winner Nick Foles!!   Nick had 1 passing TD and 250 passing yards in his first game of the season for a Bears 25-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks. Both Justin Fields and Andy Dalton have been upgraded to Questionable for the Giants game… but they should start Nick Foles… afterall Nick is the only undefeated QB on the Bears roster… and the only one with a Super Bowl win… and if he beats the Giants he may fool another team to give him another big contract this offseason to be a third stringer… stranger things have happened.

Matt went 1-2 on Sunday and is on a 7-3 NFL run and he closes Week 16 with a BIG Winner! He is on a 24-16 NFL Run and going back, he is on a 34-21 NFL RAMPAGE! Fargo is a SWEET 21-12 with his Primetime Punishers while going 677-578 +$36,583 long-term!! Get Matt Fargo’s picks!!....  They are available right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers.

RECENT FORM

The Giants are 4-11 on the season, but 6-9 ATS.  They have logged 5 Overs, 9 Unders, and 1 Push. They are a dismal 1-7 in road games.

 

The Bears are 5-10 on the season and 5-10 ATS.  They have notched 6 Overs and 9 Unders.  They are a dismal 2-5 in home games.

 

 

The Giants are 31st in points with 16.5 per game, 30th in total yards with 303.5 per game.  That breaks down to 21st in passing and 27th in rushing.  They don’t do anything well offensively. And they have had 23 turnovers in 15 games.

The Bears are 28th in points with 17.7 per game, 27th in yards with 308 per game.  It breaks down to 32nd in passing yards (yikes Justin Fields) and 8th in rushing yards (thanks Justin Fields).

The Giants are 23rd in defense.  They allow 363.9 yards per game.  They are 21st in points defense while allowing 24.3 points per game. They have one defensive bright spot and that is they rank 12th in takeaways with 21 so far this season.

The Bears are alive on defense.  They rank 9th while only giving up 326.5 yards per game and they are 4th in defending passing yards.  They do give up 24.9 ppg for a ranking of 24th , but that is more the fault of the offense and the constant stream of 3 and out that keeps the defense worn down.  LB/DE Robert Quinn has been a monster this season!  He has registered 17 sacks and 3 forced fumbles!  He will be a free agent in the off season and someone smart will scoop him up. (the Bears can’t re-sign him if Kelvin Mack comes back healthy… they won’t be able to afford both at Linebacker)

Our prediction for Sunday, January 2nd is… Bears 21 - Giants 13

The Bears should win and cover.  Whichever quarterback the Bears put up against Jake Fromme will have more experience from the jump.  And if the Giants do manage to put Daniel Jones back out there?... All three Bears QBs would still be a better choice.  I wouldn’t touch the Over/Under in this one as we simply don’t know if either team can score big and we definitely don’t know if the Giants defense can stop anything at this point of the season.

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The Giants are 4-10 ATS off a division game the last 3 seasons.

The Giants are 2-6 ATS off a loss to a division rival the last 3 seasons.

The Bears are 5-11 ATS as a favorite the last 3 seasons.

The Bears are 8-15 ATS in home games the last 3 seasons.

 

Giants:  QB Daniel Jones (Neck) Quest ** G Ben Bredeson (ankle) Quest ** WR Collin Johnson (hamstring) Quest ** T Matt Peart (knee) Out

Bears: QB Andy Dalton (hand) Quest ** QB Justin Fields (ankle) Quest **  DB Xavier Crawford (Concussion) Quest

Giants: QB Jake Fromme, RB Saquon Barkley, WR Kenny Golladay, WR Darius Slayton, TE Chris Myarick, TE Kyle Rudolph, LT Andrew Thomas, LG Matt Skura, C Billy Price, RG Will Hernandez, RT Matt Peart

Bears: QB Nick Foles, HB David Montgomery, WR Damiere Byrd, WR Darnell Mooney, WR Dazz Newsome, TE Cole Kmet, LT Teven Jenkins, LG Cody Whitehair, C Sam Mustipher, RG James Daniels, RT Germain Ifedi

Giants

Touchdowns: Devontae Booker 2

Rushing Yards: Devontae Booker 533

Passing Yards: Daniel Jones 2428

Receiving Yards: Kenny Golladay 499

Sacks: Azeez Ojulari 8.0

Interceptions: Xavier McKinney 5

Bears

Touchdowns: David Montgomery 5

Rushing Yards: David Montgomery 713

Passing Yards: Justin Fields 1,870

Receiving Yards: Darnell Mooney 860

Sacks: Robert Quinn 17

Interceptions: Tashaun Gipson SR 1

 

Partly Cloudy.  20* Wind 14 mph.  Windy and Cold at Soldier Field.