Thursday Night Football Week 14: TV Schedule, Live Stream for Cowboys vs. Bears

The Dallas Cowboys are 5-0 on the road in 2014, but their perfect mark is on the line this Thursday night at Soldier Field.

The Chicago Bears are 5-7. Their chances of winning a playoff spot in the ruthless NFC are essentially zero, meaning they're really just playing for pride. It's imperative that Dallas remains undefeated on the road, however. 

Jeff Mezydlo of Yahoo Sports wrote about how Dallas has slipped in the NFC rankings: "A 33-10 loss to Philadelphia on Thanksgiving not only dropped Dallas (8-4) out of first in the division, but also from playoff position in the conference. The Cowboys trail the Eagles by a game, and though they're tied with Seattle and Detroit for two wild-card spots, they don't hold the tiebreaker over either."

With so much at stake for the Cowboys on Thursday Night Football, this game is worth watching. Will Dallas continue its infamous history of second-half flops? They're already on their way. This one will indicate if they buck the trend.

Below is all the necessary viewing information to ensure that you don't miss a single snap.

Game Info

When: Thursday, December 4, 8:25 p.m. ET

Where: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

Watch: NFL Network 

Live Stream: AudioPass.NFL.com, GameRewind.NFL.com

Betting Info: (via Odds Shark)

• Over/Under: 51
• Spread: Dallas (-4.5)

Storylines to Watch

Battle of Inept Defenses

The Bears and the Cowboys don't exactly play a lot of defense. Well, they try.

Teams have no problems moving the ball against either unit. The Bears do succeed in defending the run, however, so it'll be interesting to see if they can contain DeMarco Murray.

Chicago's downfall defensively is against the pass. Their 30th-ranked pass defense should struggle to contain Tony Romo, even if the veteran is coming off one of his worst games in recent memory.

Against the Philadelphia Eagles on Thanksgiving Day, Romo racked up only 199 yards through the air. He didn't throw a touchdown but did toss two interceptions.

Offensive coordinator Scott Linehan isn't worried about his quarterback, though. He told reporters that Romo should bounce back in a big way:

"

Quarterbacks aren’t going to have A-games every week. You’re going to have a couple games that aren't as good as others. I love his experience and the fact that he’s been through that. He’s had a really good season for us and we as an offense, we as a team, didn’t have one of our better days last week.

It has nothing to do with anything other than we've all got to do our part better and step up better. Tony is a great, experienced veteran leader for us. We know he’s going to come ready to play the next game after a game like that.

"

Romo last faced Chicago nearly a year ago, on December 9, 2013. He completed just 11 of 20 passes in that game but threw three touchdowns and didn't turn the ball over once. That said, his team lost the game. Romo is just 1-3 in his career against the Bears.

With two so-so defenses in action, it will come down to the unit that gets the big third-down stops. According to ESPN.com, Chicago allows teams to convert third downs 41.2 percent of the time. The Cowboys allow teams to convert 46.2 percent of the time.

Jay Cutler and Romo love to sling it all over the place (sometimes with reckless abandon). The secondaries best be ready to contest passes. The team that does it best should win.

Trending Downward

John F. Rhodes/Associated Press

Both teams are 2-3 in their last five games. Chicago is 2-4 in its last six.

Chicago's slide isn't too shocking given the aforementioned defensive issues and Cutler's inconsistent play under center. He has thrown 14 interceptions this year, throwing two in one game six times. He also likes to throw picks at inopportune times, as ESPN's SportsNation tweeted:

Their current slide includes losses to winning teams, but the losses haven't been close. The Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions have run up the score and played strong defense against them.

Their two wins came against the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers—not exactly the most potent teams in the NFL.

Dallas, on the other hand, have lost three disappointing games to the Washington Redskins, Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles. After starting 6-1, they are now 8-4 and trending downward.

The Cowboys are infamous for their second-half collapses. They have gone 8-8 for three consecutive seasons. In 2011, they were 7-4 before dropping four of their last five. The next year was no better, staying at or close to .500 most of the way. Their 2013 season saw them lose three of their last four to finish at the .500 mark.

Simply put, this team doesn't play well down the stretch.

They're on their way to another collapse after starting the season so hot. It won't be easy for them to make the playoffs given this recent slide, but there's one thing that will pretty much guarantee they make the playoffs: winning out.

That won't be easy, especially with games against the Indianapolis Colts, Eagles and Redskins coming up.

One team will buck the trend on Thursday. There's more to lose for Dallas, though. A main storyline will be to watch how they cope with another potential second-half collapse.

Follow Kenny DeJohn on Twitter: @kennydejohn