Bears V. Saints: Can the Chicago Bears Defeat the Mighty Saints in the Big Easy

The surprising Chicago Bears dominated a strong Atlanta Falcons team last week, but now they face another NFC powerhouse when they travel south to the Big Easy and take on the mighty Saints. 

New Orleans opened the season with a loss to the Green Bay Packers in a contest more akin to a flag football game than a meeting between two top tier NFL teams. 

The Saints scored 34 points, but their defense gave up 42, with 21 coming in the first quarter.  Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers shredded the New Orleans defense for 299 yards and three touchdowns.

Saints signal caller Drew Brees put up even bigger numbers, garnering 396 yards through the air, but New Orleans inability to stop the Packers ultimately led to their loss.

Jay Cutler and the Bears offense played unexpectedly well against the Falcons.  They have to be even better if they expect to beat New Orleans

New Orleans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams utilizes an aggressive approach.  He blitzes often and considering the Bears issues at offensive line, expect this trend to continue.

Short passes mixed with screens and a consistent running game should keep the Saints off balance.  As long as Mike Martz stays away from long developing plays involving seven-step drops for Cutler, the Bears should find success Sunday.  If not, Cutler may spend a significant amount of time on his back.

If the Bears can sustain drives, they will keep New Orleans' high-powered offense off the field.  Despite the Bears' admirable performance on defense against Atlanta on Sunday, the Saints bring a much more volatile offense.

The task appears even more daunting considering that Brian Urlacher may not be running the Bears defense on Sunday.  His mother’s unexpected passing may keep him on the sideline for this week’s contest.

 As of this writing, the Bears are 6.5 underdogs.  Football experts aren’t expecting much from them this season, despite the fact that they fell one game short of last year’s Super Bowl and have one of the best defenses in the league.

Considering all factors, this looks to be a high scoring affair.  The Bears will most likely exploit the one-on-one matchups if New Orleans blitzes as expected. 

This contest could come down to who holds the ball last. Defeating New Orleans is as much a test of the Bears defense as for their offense.