Things haven't gone according to plan for the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions, two teams fighting not to finish in the basement of the NFC North. They'll kick off a Thanksgiving filled with football for the section straight year when they battle in Detroit on Thursday. The Lions won't have Matthew Stafford at quarterback, and they might not even have Jeff Driskel, who was listed as questionable to play after a week of limited practices due to a hamstring injury. That could put untested rookie David Blough up against a fierce Bears pass rush.
You can stream the game on fuboTV (Try for free), but you're here because you want to know which team is going to cover in this matchup. You can find all our expert picks for the game below.
Who should you back against the spread, on the money line and the total in every Week 13 NFL game? And which Super Bowl contender goes down? Visit SportsLine to see their Week 13 cheat sheet, all from the model that is up over $7,000 on its top-rated NFL picks.
Brady Quinn and Ryan Wilson broke this game down with Will Brinson on Wednesday's Pick Six podcast. You can listen below, and be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform:
Bears at Lions
- Time: Thursday, 12:30 p.m. ET (FOX)
- Open: Bears -1, O/U 39
- Current: Bears -4, O/U 37
"This is a turkey on Thanksgiving, one featuring two teams going nowhere. The Bears showed some life last week, especially on offense. The Lions are a mess. But give me the Lions at home on Turkey Day to pull off the upset." -- Pete Prisco on why he's bucking conventional wisdom and playing the Lions in this matchup
I've been on a great run picking Bears games over the years, and I'm 25-12 in my last 37 ATS picks for or against the Bears. I think if you're playing the total, you should definitely lean to the Under, but if you want to know which team I've landed on against the spread, you'll need to head over to SportsLine.
"Can't back the Lions with the quarterback situation being problematic -- it sounds like David Blough is going to play for Detroit -- and all of their issues. The Bears aren't good, per se, but the offense is playing a little better and Detroit can be beat in the pass game, so Mitchell Trubisky should have some success. I love the Under in this spot but if I have to take one team, I'm taking Chicago." -- Will Brinson on why he's rolling with the road favorites in the Thanksgiving opener
"After initially leaning toward the Lions, I'm reversing field and going with the Bears on the strength of their fourth-ranked scoring defense. Chicago's offense, a unit that has struggled for much of the season, should be able to have just enough success against a Detroit defense that is 30th in pass defense and 24th against the run." -- Bryan DeArdo on why he has the Bears winning 24-21
"The Bears somehow have an opportunity to salvage their season despite an offense that continues to struggle to put up 20 points a game. The only time Chicago has scored 20 or more over the last five games is against the Lions, who may not have No. 2 quarterback Jeff Driskel for the Thanksgiving game (hamstring). This is a game for the Bears to get their running game going as the Lions are 24th in the NFL allowing 120.7 yards per game. They also allow 4.4 yards per carry (20th in NFL). The Bears average just 3.4 yards per carry (29th in NFL), but this is a chance to put up more than 81 yards (which they did in the last meeting). If Driskel can't go, the Lions will have to go with undrafted rookie David Blough from Purdue. This is against a Bears defense this is fourth in the NFL in points (17.1) and yards (315.6) allowed. Good luck." -- Jeff Kerr on why he has the Bears winning 21-16
