The Chicago Bears are taking a trip down to Charlotte, Carolina for their regular season opener, and already the NFL world is abuzz for the return of football! The season kicks off on Wednesday night with the Patriots and Seahawks in the first game of the season. Already ESPN has published Week 1 betting odds from DraftKings, and Chicago football fans may be pleased with where they've landed.
ESPN published a spread showing that the Bears are ever so slightly favored, and they're expected to win by less than three points. Those odds are always subject to change until the actual event happens, so it's always good to take these predictions with a healthy grain of salt. But it is encouraging to hear that the Bears are favored for their first game knowing what happened last season.
Last season’s opener remains an uncomfortable warning
Chicago hosted Minnesota to kick off Ben Johnson's tenure as the Bears head coach, and things went very well into the fourth quarter. The Bears had been on top virtually the entire game, and they were up 17-6. Then Minnesota scored 21 unanswered points before completing a 27-24 comeback.
It was a real kick in the teeth for Bears fans. The optimism surrounding Johnson and the team took a hit, but I don't think it was quite as bad as the following week where they were blown out by Detroit. Then the Bears won the NFC North and carried a run into the playoffs. It was a real-time display of not letting those spots you've faltered get you down.
But now the Bears are determined to start the season off on the right track. The schedule shows a difficult journey, but the starting point doesn't need to be. Carolina won the NFC South last year, making this more of a legitimate road test than Carolina in years prior. But hopefully the Bears have been able to lean on Dennis Allen's experience with Dave Canales and the Panthers, and they'll be better off for it.
Last year was the very first step in a long trek. It was the first game under Johnson and Allen, and the team clearly needed just a little bit more time before they truly found their footing. They were testing the waters of Johnson's then-unproven system. Now, after a full season of success, and in the face of many possible setbacks, the Bears take on Week 1 in Charlotte with a much more confident demeanor.
The Bears being slightly favored doesn't make the opening game predictable or provide any guarantees. But it does demonstrate how the perception of the team has changed in such a short time. From a more credible position, Chicago now needs to prove that the expectations surrounding them aren't simply the cause of previous success, but rather they're the result of meticulous planning and careful decision making.
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