The NFL Preseason is into its final week, meaning it’s time for one last tune-up before the real action kicks off in September. After a boatload of games over the last couple of days, the schedule wraps up on Saturday with just two contests. At 6 p.m. ET, the new-look Tennessee Titans host the Chicago Bears for the final matchup of the preseason.
Here’s a prediction and pick for Bears vs. Titans in the NFL Preseason on Saturday, courtesy of odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Bears vs. Titans preview
The preseason really doesn’t mean all that much in the grand scheme of things, so it shouldn’t be used as a measuring stick for a team’s future performance. However, for the clubs themselves, there are reasons that these games do matter – especially with the final week of games serving as a final opportunity to evaluate talent, potentially deciding position battles and depth moves.
The Bears are 1-1 after their opening two contests. They handily beat the Cleveland Browns 34-10, but then fell to the Cincinnati Bengals 27-9 the following week. Through the small sample, it looks like we may know the story of the season – high offense, poor defense. Yes, it’s tough to glean much from the preseason, but this assessment would back the general consensus on Chicago as well.
The Bears will rest most of their starters, so Tyson Bagent may start before Case Keenum and Miller Moss enter the game on Saturday. Roschon Johnson has led the backfield in front of Salvon Ahmed and Brittain Brown, who are all competing for depth roles behind the top two halfbacks. Maurice Alexander has stood out the most of receiving weapons likely to see some run, catching eight balls for 102 yards in two games, too. Even with names from way down the depth chart, production has been no problem with 430 and 322 total yards of offense from this team in its two outings.
The Titans have far lower expectations than the Bears this year, but winning both preseason games does provide some hope. They took down the San Francisco 49ers 19-13 and the Seattle Seahawks 19-16, so while the offense hasn’t been rolling by any means, the defense has held opponents in check. That’s exactly what the goal was in hiring Robert Saleh as head coach.
Unlike most teams, it seems Tennessee may send the starters out for some work tonight after all for around 20-25 plays. Cam Ward has not played particularly well in the limited sample, so it’s understandable the team may like to get the former No. 1 pick some extra reps at game speed with his new teammates. Tyjae Spears, Nick Singleton and Tony Pollard have all seen carries in the backfield to varying degrees of success, but it’s the receiving corps we’re really looking at. Wan’Dale Robinson, signed from the New York Giants via free agency, won’t play after suffering an injury last week. That means first-rounder Carnell Tate may need to step up – though he’s recorded a grand total of zero receptions in the preseason thus far.
Bears vs. Titans prediction, pick
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Titans as a 2.5-point home favorite in this matchup with -153 odds to win on the Moneyline. The Bears are a +127 underdog with the game total set at 36.5 combined points.
It’s interesting to see Tennessee at -2.5, especially given that starters are likely to see a series or two. However, it’s tough to trust this group and its depth to hang with the offensive production we’ve seen from Chicago in the opening two games. The Bears have been racking up yards like it’s easy, and while the Titans have kept points low from opponents thus far, that’s a tougher task in this one. Given the inconsistencies from the Titans’ new-look roster and coaching staff, they’re a team to fade in this one.
