Chicago Bears vs Kansas City Chiefs

A David vs Goliath matchup highlights the NFL Week 3 schedule, as the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs play host to the freefalling Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs bounced back from an upset loss to Detroit in their season opener with a 17-9 win in Jacksonville last weekend to improve to 9-1 SU in their past 10 overall contests. The Bears saw their current SU losing streak extend to 12 games with last weekend’s 27-17 loss in Tampa Bay.

With that defeat, the Bears have also lost SU in nine of their past 10 on the road. In addition, Chicago has lost outright in 10 straight since 2008 while pegged as a road underdog by double digits and has covered the spread just twice while averaging a meager 9.7 points per game over that stretch.  

Latest Betting Notes: Chicago Bears

The Bears seized the early lead and managed to keep things close with a 20-yard scoring catch by Chase Claypool midway through the final frame. But the Bears subsequently saw their comeback bid scuttled by a pair of interceptions thrown by quarterback Justin Fields, on their way to a 12th straight defeat.

Pegged as strong 2.5-point underdogs in the contest, the Bears’ 27-17 defeat marked their fifth straight loss by double-digit margins, and consequently their fifth straight ATS defeat. Overall, Chicago has now failed to score more than 20 points in eight straight games while surrendering 31.8 points per game over that stretch. The upside for Chicago is the trend toward low scoring when the team visits Kansas City, with the total failing to top 36 in five clashes since 1981.

Latest Betting Notes: Kansas City Chiefs

Shocked by a 21-20 loss to the visiting Detroit Lions on the season premiere of Thursday Night Football, the Chiefs also had their hands full in last weekend’s visit to Jacksonville. The Chiefs did themselves no favors with a pair of early turnovers, and by racking up 94 yards in penalties. But after scoring on the first drive of the second half, the Chiefs' defense emerged as the star of this team, limiting the Jags to just 75 total yards in the third quarter.

Despite the gaffes and slow start, Patrick Mahomes extended his streak of games without at least one TD pass to 30. But with just 37 total points scored this season, the Chiefs have work to do to overcome some scoring woes that have limited them to 24.2 points per game while going just 1-3 ATS in their past four home dates.

The Keys to Victory: Bears

In his post-game comments, Justin Fields stated the Bears “definitely have a lot to fix”. While the Bears quarterback did his part to keep things close by tossing for 211 yards and one score, he enjoyed little help. The Bears offensive line allowed Fields to get sacked six times, bringing his season total to 10.

While Fields was constantly on the run, he picked up just three of the team’s 67 total rushing yards and faces a massive challenge to spark the Bears' ground game against a Chiefs rush defense that has allowed an average of just 106.1 rushing yards and only 11 total TD runs in 19 their past 19 regular season games.

On a positive note, receiver Darnell Mooney has so far avoided the injury report after suffering a knee injury in Tampa Bay, and rookie rusher Roschon Johnson was steady once again while contributing 32 yards on four carries including a 29-yard run that set the stage for a Bears field goal in the second quarter.

The Keys to Victory: Chiefs

First and foremost, the Chiefs must avoid the sloppy starts and costly penalties that have marked their first two contests. The Chiefs have yet to score in first-quarter action so far this season and have failed to receive much production from their ground game apart from Isiah Pacheco’s 70-yard performance in Jacksonville.

After entering Sunday’s date with the Jaguars with a lengthy injury report, this team needs to quickly return to full health. Travis Kelce returned to action last weekend after missing Week 1 and contributed a TD and 26 receiving yards. Clyde Edwards-Helaire compiled just 17 receiving yards after missing practice all week due to illness but is hoped to be fully recovered by the weekend.