Final Score Prediction for Bears vs. Cardinals in NFL Week 9 (Chicago Set for Good Score)

The Chicago Bears will look to quickly overcome the loss of the Maryland Miracle when they travel to Arizona in Week 9 to take on Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals. Chicago’s schedule for the second half of the season features many strong teams, so winning winning games is critical to their playoff hopes.

The Cardinals unexpectedly took first place in the NFC West this week, but with the 49ers and Seahawks holding the same record, they’ll need to keep winning to stay in that spot.

Let’s dive into the latest odds for this NFC matchup and then I’ll predict the final score.

Odds via Bookmaker DraftKings

Spreading

Money line

General

The Bears were initially considered 1-point favorites, but that has since changed and they are now 1.5-point underdogs. The total also dropped by one point from 45.5 to 44.5.

In this week’s Road to 272, I explained why I’m backing the Bears to win in Arizona:

Kyler Murray will face a tough test for the Bears, who rank second in the NFL in opposing running back EPA and sixth in opposing running back success rate. The Bears’ defense hasn’t gotten enough credit for being a dominant unit this season. If Chicago can get any level of production from their offense, they should be able to beat Arizona on the road.

Luckily for them, the Cardinals’ defense is one of the worst in the league, ranking 29th in opponent EPA per game and dead last in opponent success rate. Of course, the Bears can’t have a bad game against a bad defense two weeks in a row.

As for the total, I expect it to stay below the total given how much confidence I have in the Bears defense. If they can shut down Murray like they’ve done with so many other defensemen this season, we could see a case of subpar numbers.

Final score prediction: Bears 21, Cardinals 16.

Odds are updated periodically and are subject to change.

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You can check out all of Ian’s bets here!