Two of the NFL's top teams are going to meet this Sunday night when the Houston Texans face the "Monsters of the Midway" the Chicago Bears. The Bears will have one distinct advantage Sunday night against their opponents, home field. Soldier Field in Chicago has a predicted forecast of temperatures in the low 30s and a chance of showers. The weather could make this game quite ugly, and may not benefit Houston much, considering it is between 70-80 degrees this time of year in H-town. But, if the game does get ugly because of the weather, I expect both teams to give a blue collar performance via smash mouth football and solid defense.
This game will be a good test for both 7-1 teams, and should help to gauge their placement and chances of making it to the Super Bowl at the Superdome in February, which very well good be a rematch of this very game. What makes this game even more intriguing is that each team's only loss this season came by way of Green Bay, and the Bears are unbeaten at home while Houston is yet to lose on the road. I'm going to breakdown the strengths and weaknesses of both clubs going into Sunday night's big game, as well as some "X-factors" to consider. There is a ton of factors to consider going into this game, which makes the NFL so great week in and week out.
Bears:
Strengths:
Defense:
We all know the Bears #1 strength as a team is their defense.
The Bears are playing like the "Monsters of the Midway" on the defensive side of the ball again and have made very few errors this season. They rank 16th against the pass, yielding 230.9 yards per game, and 6th in rush defense, holding opponents to a meager 88.0 yards per game. They are also 2nd in the NFL in scoring defense at 15.0 points per game, tied with Houston for 3rd with 25 sacks and lead the league with 28 forced turnovers. Chicago's defense has also scored seven defensive touchdowns this season.
Offense:
Brandon Marshall has 59 receptions, 797 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns this season (his first in Chicago). Marshall already topped all of the Bears' individual receiving leaders numbers from last season.
Weaknesses:
Chicago is VERY WEAK on offense, the fact that they are 7-1 is pretty remarkable. Chicago ranks near the bottom of the league placing 25th in total offense, averaging 324.4 yards per game and 29th in passing averaging just 195.9 yards per game. The Bears offensive line has yielded 28 sacks this season, which is third-most in the NFL and the offense has only managed 19 offense touchdowns. The Bears defense has as many touchdowns as the Bears offense has rushing this season with 7, and Houston is yet to give up a rushing touchdown this season.
Texans:
Strengths:
Offense:
Houston protects the football, something the Bears thrive off of is turnovers, this Texans team has the pedigree to maintain possessions against the Bears and shouldn't turn the ball over if the weather is fair. Houston has the league-low with six turnovers this season and averages 138.0 yards on the ground. Arian Foster is 5th in the NFL with 770 rushing yards and leads the league with 11 overall TDs (10 rushing). Houston also protects their quarterback Matt Schaub very well, allowing only 10 sacks this season which is tied for the fewest in the AFC. The Texans are 16th in passing yards averaging 233.8 yards per game, not bad for a team that looks to run the ball first.
Defense:
Everyone talks about the Bears defense, but statistically, Houston is better on the defensive side of the ball when compared to Chicago as well. Houston ranks 4th in passing yards allowed, giving up 203.8 yards per game and 2nd in rushing yards allowed giving up only 81.9 yards per game.
Weaknesses:
Not many, Houston doesn't really have a glaring weakness, they have holes, but they aren't weak in any particular area on either side of the ball. One weakness(If you would call it that) is that they don't produce as many turnovers as Chicago and special teams could be an area of concern, but not likely.
X-Factors:
-Matt Schaub
has won 11 of his last 12 starts. Since Week 7 of the 2011 season, Schaub's 11-1 record is tied for the best among all starting quarterbacks. He's tied with Jay Cutler in this category. Game management and not making costly mistakes on offense is going to be a huge factor in this game, like any other, but who will win this chess game of QBs?
-Houston's defensive end J.J. Watt is my defensive MVP pick for the season so far, with 10 1/2 sacks and 10 passes defended. Stopping J.J. Watt will be a huge challenge for a mediocre Bears offensive line.
-If anyone else can be placed in the discussion for defensive player of the year it is Chicago Bears cornerback Charles Tillman of the Bears has forced 7 fumbles this season.
-Temperatures in the low 30s and a chance of showers benefits Chicago.
My Irrelevant Prediction: Texans win 31-21
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