Chicago Bears/Detroit Lions Thanksgiving Day Preview
Oh my gourd! The Chicago Bears (3-7) are forced to play this meaningless game on Thanksgiving Day against the beyond-hapless Detroit Lions (0-9-1). Why? Tradition. Maybe we can push for a new tradition. Make the Lions forfeit every Thanksgiving Day. Or better yet, force them to give up their annual “right” of hosting the Thanksgiving morning game since they stink.
Why are we forced to not watch this drivel each and every year? Nobody respects the Lions. NOBODY. The Chicago Tribune posted some Thanksgiving history the other day. Historically, the Detroit Lions have played 81 times on the holiday. The Dallas Cowboys have played 53 times. The Chicago Bears have the third most Thanksgiving games (tied with Green Bay), having played 36 times. Chicago is 19-15-2. Recently, Chicago has been forced to play on Thanksgiving in 2004, 2014, 2015, 2018, and 2019. That’s about six times too many in our opinion… especially when it’s against the Lions.
Instead, the Bears have had to play them on Thanksgiving Day so many times it makes my smallish turkey head spin on a swivel. If I had a dewlap or a wattle, I’d be looking around warily for the butcher. These are the types of phrases that earn the “Dutch Lion” plenty of groans on Thanksgiving afternoon at the big family gathering. It’s ok. That’s the deal when you’re a celebrity. He puts up with it before going home on Thursday night, crying himself to sleep.
So the problem here is, who do we pick? “Dutch Lion” is so proud of his 9-1 record that he is scared to pick this one and fall back into the crowd of poor Bears prognosticators. Can we predict a tie? Detroit already has one of those this year. They tied the Steelers in Pittsburgh a few weeks ago, which is something the Bears couldn’t achieve.
As usual, I guess we’ll look at the numbers to help us decide.
Troy Aikman’s Efficiency Ratings (AER)
- Chicago Bears (3-7) : 27th offense, 20th defense
- Detroit Lions (0-9-1) : 29th offense, 31st defense
- Chicago : 26th overall, 26th offense, 16th defense, 22nd special teams
- Detroit : 30th overall, 30th offense, 28th defense, 4th special teams
- Chicago : 27th overall, 3-7 ATS
- Detroit : 30th overall, 6-4 ATS
SportsBettingDime.com has Chicago favored by 2.5 points. Their predictive formula has the Bears winning 28.4-18.6.
Prediction:
Uhhh, do we have to pick? The Bears and the Lions are two of the worst teams (and franchises) in the NFL. Obviously the Bears have a much richer history but as of late, neither team has had much success. Since 2010, the Bears have won the NFC North exactly one time (2018). Since 1993, the Lions have won the NFC North… zero times. That is ridiculous.
As much as we think the Bears stink right now, the Lions smell worse. PICK: Chicago to win but barely cover the spread.
Chicago Bears 20, Detroit Lions 16
Last week’s Prediction: Baltimore Ravens 19, Chicago Bears 14
Last Week’s Final Score: Pittsburgh Steelers 16, Chicago Bears 13
2021 Season: Chicago Bears 3-7, Dutch Lion 9-1
Dutch Lion Sports 
Now…
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