Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears NFL Week 12 Picks and Odds

Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears Betting Preview

WagerTalk NFL handicapper Tony Finn offers his Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears Week 12 betting preview for Thursday, November 25. At the time of posting, the Bears are a 3-point road favorite in Detroit, with the total sitting at 41.5 points.

Stay on top of the latest NFL updates direct from Las Vegas!

Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears Predictions

Detroit Lions +3 vs Chicago Bears
Total: 41.5 Points
Chicago is 5-11 against the spread in their last 16 games as a favorite.
The under is 7-1 in the Lions’ last eight games.

Some things never change, and I hope that Thanksgiving Day National Football League action with family and friends never does. The Turkey Day mix of family and football is as good as it gets. The NFL’s traditional Thanksgiving Day tripleheader kicks off the holiday with a matchup from the “Black and Blue” division, as the Detroit Lions (0-9-1, 0-4 Home) welcome the Chicago Bears (3-7, 1-4 Away) to Ford Field in beautiful downtown Detroit.

The best way for Thanksgiving to start is biscuits and gravy followed by the beverage of your choice or my beverage, a rip-roaring-spicy Bloody Mary and the remote. But, of course, the best start – previously mentioned – would be for Detroit’s good people and faithful fans to garner the Lions’ first win of the 2021 campaign.

The win-less Lions have been consistently competitive in the first half of the season. They earned a rare tie in Week 10 against the Pittsburgh Steelers and took the Cleveland Browns to the mat more than once in last week’s 13-10 loss at FirstEnergy Stadium.

The Thanksgiving Day matchup between the Bears and Lions is the second and final game for the NFC North rivals. Chicago enters the contest with a longer losing streak than host Detroit. The Bears are working on a five-game slide while the tie with the Steelers puts the Lions in a position to end their winless season and end a one-game slide.

The World Wide Leader in Sports coverage reported Tuesday that Chicago Bears coach Matt Nagy denied a report that he had been informed he would be fired after Thursday’s game against the Detroit Lions, saying he has not spoken to the team’s leadership about his job status.

“That is not accurate,” Nagy said in a Tuesday afternoon quick-hitting 10-minute presser with the national media. The ESPN report was based on a piece published by Patch.com, who reported they acquired the Intel from a “top source.”

ESPN added, “Nagy said he has not spoken to owner George McCaskey, team president Ted Phillips or general manager Ryan Pace this week. The group has regularly scheduled meetings, Nagy said, but skipped it this week because of an already-short week of game preparations.”

The Bears (3-7) and the Lions (0-9-1) have a garden variety of injuries that likely won’t deliver gameday status until early Thursday morning. However, Chicago bench boss Nagy said that his quarterback Justin Fields (ribs) would return to his starting role once he is healthy enough to do so.

Chicago Bears

Rookie quarterback Justin Fields is listed as doubtful by the Bears’ official team website.

On Tuesday, Nagy told the press what most of us expected to hear. That backup QB Andy Dalton will get the start on Thursday with Justin Fields injured.

Fields had compiled just over 100 yards of offense before being removed from the game against the Baltimore Ravens midway through the third quarter to his current rib injury. The former Ohio State signal-caller completed just four of 11 passes for 79 yards and had rushed for 23 yards before exiting for the sideline tent.

For transparency, Nagy also confirmed that the test runs on Fields revealed a bruised rib cage area, not broken ribs. Furthermore, Nagy said on Tuesday that Fields won’t even be used in an emergency and won’t be active on Thursday. That delivery tells us that Nick Foles will be dressed and available if needed rather than carrying around a clipboard for the duration of the game. Foles will serve as Dalton’s backup.

Chicago’s defense failed to hold a late lead given to the team by Dalton and the offense. Baltimore backup quarterback Tyler Huntley, who was starting for Jackson (illness), neatly led the Ravens 72 yards in five plays for the game-winning touchdown with a mere 22 seconds remaining in the game.

The Bears’ defensive front is tied for the league lead with 31 sacks, including six in Sunday’s loss to the Ravens, but is without Khalil Mack for the rest of the season.

Detroit Lions

Detroit has a quarterback difficulty as well. Starting QB Jared Goff missed last week’s game because of an oblique injury. Backup Tim Boyle started in his place. On Tuesday, head coach Dan Campbell told the media that Goff was making progress. As of yesterday afternoon’s meeting that the Detroit coaching and training staff were leaning towards starting Goff.

The Lions outscored the Browns 10-0 in the second half of last Sunday’s non-conference matchup in Cleveland and were once again close but no-cigar short of earning the first “Dub” of the year with the road upset.

Without Goff behind center on Thursday, the Lions will be much more conservative than they would be with their seasoned veteran first-year starter.

The accolades and the butt-slaps given the Chicago Bears defense in the first half of the season have dissipated. The Bears rank 23rd in the league against the run (122.8 ypg). The Bears stop-unit also has allowed an average of 343.9 total yards positioning Chicago as the 11th ranked defense that includes 24 points per game.

If they keep the Bears’ secondary honest with a ground and pound rushing attack, Detroit has a better chance of earning their first win on Thursday. The Lions rate as the 16th franchise in rushing offense (114.2 ypg) on the season.

The Goff-led passing attack (197.8 ypg, 30th in the league rankings) has averaged less than 200 yards per game through the air.

Detroit’s defense can, and likely will, see the Bears attack a Lions front seven that has surrendered 140.5 rushing yards per game, which ranks 31st of 32 NFL teams.

Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears Injury Report

Chicago Bears Injury Report
RB Damien Williams (calf/knee) is questionable.
QB Justin Fields (ribs) is out.
WR Allen Robinson II (hamstring) is questionable.
WR Darnell Mooney (foot) is questionable.
CB Duke Shelley (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve Tuesday.
DT Akiem Hicks (undefined) is questionable.
S Eddie Jackson (undefined is questionable.

Detroit Lions Injury Report
QB Jared Goff (oblique) is a game-time decision.
DE Da’Shawn Hand (groin) was moved to injured reserve Tuesday.
RB Jermar Jefferson (ankle) is questionable.
WR Trinity Benson (knee) is questionable.
DE Michael Brockers (undefined) is questionable.
LB Trey Flowers (undefined) is questionable.

Chicago has won six of the past seven meetings with Detroit, including their early October matchup at Soldier Field. Neither offense is dynamic or explosive, so points will be at a premium early Thursday.

In this first of three Thanksgiving Day games, I expect victory to go to the team that controls the trenches, runs the football at a five-yard per carry average, and does so without turning the ball over on the wrong side of the field.

The victor of the early Thursday holiday event wins time of possession and the game in a low scoring affair, making a play Under the Total of 41.5 points, this author lean.

💰An argument could be made that this is the best sports week of the year: Wall-to-wall college basketball, Thanksgiving NFL and college football regular season finales. 7-Day All-Access packages are the lowest price of the year.
➡️Choose Your ‘Capper(s): https://t.co/COiDEBTy25 pic.twitter.com/WrkBijeFrk

— WagerTalk (@WagerTalk) November 22, 2021

Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears Analysis from The GoldSheet

Though the Lions have remarkably managed six spread covers without a straight-up win this season, they aren’t getting their normal cushion from the oddsmakers here. But whether it’s the limited Boyle (only 77 yards passing last week at Cleveland) or the banged-up Jared Goff (oblique strain), Detroit is going to run the ball with D’Andre Swift, off a career-best 136 yards rushing vs. the Browns and beyond 100 yards rushing each of the past two weeks. That suggests another slower pace which has been common in Lions games that have landed “under” in seven of the last eight.

As it appears that Justin Fields won’t recover in time from his rib injury on Sunday, Dalton likely in the Chicago cockpit one more, further prompting us to note the Bears’ low-scoring tendencies (7-2 “under” last nine). So, rather than trust either of these inept attacks, we’ll just expect another lower-scoring grinder like the Oct. 3 clash at Soldier Field (24-14 Bears). Play the Under.

Bet On It | Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears Preview

In this week’s episode of Bet On It: Kelly Stewart, Marco D’Angelo and Gianni the Greek break down the three NFL Week 12 Thanksgiving games: Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears; Dallas Cowboys vs Las Vegas Raiders; and New Orleans Saints vs Buffalo Bills.

WagerTalk Live Odds Screen

WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the moneylines, point spreads, first half lines and betting percentages for all of the NFL Week 12 games, including this Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears showdown, from your desktop or phone.

**************************************************

Looking for more free sports picks and sports betting tips?

Latest Betting Odds and Public Action: Vegas lines updated in real time, including who the public is betting on.
Last Minute Handicapping Advice: Check out our extensive library of handicapping tips and advice from professional Vegas handicappers (we also recommend taking the time to look over our sports betting tips video library)
Want an expert opinion? Check out the latest Free Sports Picks and Best Bets from our team of expert sports handicappers.