Monday Night Football: 5 Bold Predictions for Bears vs. Eagles

When the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles meet on Monday night, each team will be looking to win its third straight and improve upon a disappointing start to the season.

Chicago is coming off a bye week and two convincing victories over Tampa Bay and Minnesota. Its defense is making strides in each game, but will have its hands full with Michael Vick, LeSean McCoy, and the rest of the Eagles’ offense.

Philadelphia is still struggling to live up to its preseason hype. In its last two games against Washington and Dallas, however, the team looked much more like “the Dream Team” and much less like the disorganized bunch of stars hastily assembled at the beginning of the season.

On Monday night, one team will continue its success and one team will be forced to remember the uncomfortable feeling of losing.

Here are five bold predictions for this week’s Monday Night Football game. 

Philadelphia Finally Has All Its Pieces Together

In their last two games, the Philadelphia Eagles finally began to look like the team most people were envisioning in the preseason.

Their defensive line is getting healthy and more confident. Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Asante Samuel are realizing that bringing three elite playmakers together can be a very lethal combination.

LeSean McCoy is running as well as he has in his career and Michael Vick is finally starting to come into his own after early season injuries.

This Eagles team took a little longer than some expected to become comfortable playing together. However, now that they have a few games under their belt, Philadelphia is coming together and looking like the team to beat.

Philadelphia’s dominance will continue against the Chicago Bears, who simply do not have the playmakers on offense or defense to slow down the Eagles’ well-balanced attack.

Matt Forte Will Struggle

Matt Forte has played amazingly well considering the off-field drama he has had to deal with this year.

Forte has been asking the Chicago Bears for a contract extension all season. Chicago has been very stingy and so far, has left Forte hanging. 

Despite all the questions surrounding Forte’s time with the Bears, the running back has put up gaudy numbers. He has over 1,000 all-purpose yards on the season and has nine runs of 20 yards or more on the season.

This will be the week all the drama catches up to Forte. The Bears are coming off a bye week in which the vast majority of talk about the team centered on Forte and his contract. That has to be draining.

The Philadelphia Eagles are finally healthy and becoming comfortable playing together. If Forte is a little off his game early, it will give the Eagles confidence and the defense could shut him down for the entire night.

LeSean McCoy Will Continue His Brilliance

LeSean McCoy rushed for 126 yards on 28 carries against the Washington Redskins. He followed up that performance by rushing for a career high 185 yards on 30 carries against the Dallas Cowboys.

McCoy is finding holes all over the field and then simply running past any other defenders that get in his way.   

The Chicago Bears’ defense has been steadily improving this season, but they are still not a great defensive team. The squad has traditionally excelled against the run, but because of injuries they have not been as effective as usual.

As players work their way back into Chicago’s lineup, there will be a certain amount of chemistry issues that need to be worked out. Expect McCoy to exploit those and rack up even more yards against a still-recovering Bears’ defense.

Chicago’s Receiver Woes Will Become More Apparent

The leading receiver on the Chicago Bears’ roster is Matt Forte, a running back. While it is true that Forte is having a special year, the Bears need someone else to step up to help quarterback Jay Cutler and the rest of the offense.

Chicago’s leading receiver in terms of receptions, Devin Hester, has 21 catches on the season. Forte has 38. And has gained over 100 yards more than Hester. 

The Philadelphia Eagles have not one, but three shut down corners on their roster. Chicago’s receivers have been underperforming all season and Monday night will be no different. 

However, against the Eagles, Chicago’s receiving struggles will cost the Bears the game. Jay Cutler has had virtually no protection all year. Now that he is finally getting a little bit of time in the pocket, he has no one to throw to.

The Bears’ offense will stall frequently on Monday and Philadelphia’s star defensive players could have big nights.

Michael Vick Will Win His Matchup with Brian Urlacher

Michael Vick will be able to find holes in the Chicago Bears’ secondary. The question is, can he avoid Brian Urlacher and complete his throws?

Against Dallas last week, Vick had a great game, completing 75 percent of his passes for 279 yards and two touchdowns. He has become a better passer this year because he is learning how to read defenses and anticipate open receivers.

Playing against Urlacher will be a real test for Vick. Vick has had to rely less on his legs in the past few weeks because LeSean McCoy has been gaining enough yards on the ground for two players. However, this week, Vick should try and scramble early to keep Urlacher on his toes. 

Vick is a lethal quarterback because at any time, he could run downfield for a 30-yard gain. Urlacher knows this and will be trying to stop the run. Vick has become a skilled enough player that once he establishes his presence as a runner, he will be able to fake-out Urlacher and make passes to open receivers downfield.