Panthers vs Bears

Tomorrow the Chicago Bears will play the Carolina Panthers in Bank of America Stadium. Both teams go into Sunday at 2-2 and our looking to bounce back after being blowout last week. The Bears are undefeated on the road this season and will be looking to add another victory against the Panthers.

The Bears will win if: The Chicago Bears defense steps up to the challenge this week and actually forces the Carolina offense to punt. Last week there wasn’t a single punt in Sunday’s loss, which is only the second time in NFL history that this has happened. It's highly unlikely this will happen this Sunday because Cam Newton is no Aaron Rodgers and the Bear's defense can’t play as bad as it did a week ago. If the Bears can generate some pass rush and force Cam Newton to stay in the pocket, I have confidence that the defense will be okay. Some defense statistics to know about before Sunday’s game, The Bears rank 20^th in the league in both their opponents rushing and passing game so far. The Panthers offense ranks 13^th in the pass and 29^th in the run.

To the offense side of the ball, Jay Cutler just needs to do one thing, DON’T TURN THE BALL OVER! In the games the Bears are zero in the turnover margin they are 2-0, when they decide to get sloppy with the ball they are 0-2. I’m not saying the offense has to be perfect but win the turnover margin and you put yourself in a good position to win the game. To go along with not turning the ball over, the Bears need to continue off of last week and pound the rock against a 27^th ranked rushing defense. The offense will do its job, especially since Brandon Marshall has practiced all week and is feeling better than he ever has. A healthy Marshall is a tall task to defend for any opposing defense.

The Bears will lose if: Cam Newton can escape the pocket and extend plays with his legs and arm. Cam Newton is the 4^th mobile quarterback the Bears will face this season. The defense did a good job at containing Colin Kaepernick and Geno Smith but were exploited by EJ Manuel when he ran outside the pocket. If Newton has time to throw I don’t know how well the Bears secondary will fare against a rookie wide receiver in Kelvin Benjamin who has had a hot start to the season. Former bear Greg Olsen is another offensive weapon to look out for, he has 21 receptions and 2 touchdowns this season. The linebackers must do a good job at not letting him get a free release so it disrupts the timing of the passing routes.

The Bears offense on the other hand need to be aware of the man in the middle Luke Kuechly. He does everything for this football team, leading his team in tackles with 46. He can fill gaps, stops the run or he will drop back in coverage and disrupt an offense. The defensive's energy feeds off of him, so if Kuechly can get going early the defense will be fired up and ready to play. 

http://www.gamblerspalace.com/articles/football/nfl/nfl-gambling-bears-invade-carolina-to-start-preseason-23388