Posted on 10/24/2007 8:09:47 PM

NFL Football Betting: Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears

By Charles Jay

The Detroit Lions (4-2 SU, 3-2-1 ATS), who erupted with a 34-point fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears (3-4 SU, 2-5 ATS) when these two teams met earlier in the season, visit Soldier Field on Sunday at 1 PM ET for the first rematch of the NFL season. In the BetUS NFL football betting odds, Chicago is listed at -5.5, with the total posted at 44 points.

BetUS NFL betting odds: Chicago -5.5, Total: 44

NOTABLE STAT: Detroit has been outscored 90-24 in its last two road games

KEY NFL BETTING TREND: Detroit is 3-8 ATS in its last 11 road games

(For more useful stats and trends, visit our special Matchup Tool)

It is huge revenge for the Bears, who were ahead 13-3 against Detroit before the roof fell in. That was the first start at quarterback for Brian Griese, who threw three interceptions in the game. Since then, however, Griese has won the confidence of his teammates, leading the team to road wins over Green Bay and Philadelphia. Last Sunday against the Eagles he was 27-41 for 322 yards and a touchdown, without any pickoffs.

Lions quarterback Jon Kitna had stated before the season that his team would win 10 games, and Detroit is on a pace to do just that, with four wins in its first six games. But something tells you they're just not complete enough to take this all the way to the finish. Detroit did get a productive day out of running back Kevin Jones against Tampa Bay (76 yards) with led to a balanced attack (147 yards both rushing and passing), but that was an anomaly. And the Lions were lucky to get out of that home game with a win, as Jeff Garcia made a couple of costly fumbles to kill drives for the Bucs. They had the ball for only 24 minutes in the entire game.

Let's take a quick look at some NFL betting trends that impact on this matchup:

* DETROIT is 8-44 SU on the road since 2001

* DETROIT has covered three of its last 11 road games

* DETROIT has covered the last two against Chicago, but was 0-3-1 ATS previous to that

* CHICAGO is 0-3 ATS at home this year, but was 11-5 ATS the previous two years

* Four of the last five meetings between these two have gone over the total

* CHICAGO has played four of their last five games over the total, as well as 20 of their last 29

It is true that the Bears' defense isn't as menacing as it has been in the recent past, but this team still has athletes that can rush the quarterback, and Kitna has been sacked 28 times already, which puts him on pace to surpass last season's bloated figure of 63 sacks. The key for the Bears is whether they can turn around the turnover story. As mentioned, Griese tossed three INT's against Detroit the first time around; Kitna went without an interception in that game. In road games, Kitna has thrown 5 TD's and five INT's and has been sacked 18 times. Griese has not been mistake-free (6 INT's) but is now starting to find a new outlet in tight end Greg Olson (four catches for 48 yards last week), who is an All-Pro in the making.

Chicago was burned a couple of weeks ago by a 224-yard rushing performance fromMinnesota's Adrian Peterson. Detroit doesn't really have anyone of that level in its backfield. The Bears got a big emotional uplift with the win in Philadelphia, and we have little faith in Detroit, which has won just eight of its last 52 on the road, until it can beat a quality foe as the visitor. Indeed, the Lions were smacked around by both the Eagles (56-21) and Redskins (34-3). That having been said, we'll lay the points with a motivated Chicago bunch, the 5.5-point favorite in the BetUS NFL football betting odds.

JAY'S PLAY: CHICAGO ** (Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

> > Check Week 8 Odds Here

The 2007 NFL betting season is here in full force! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The BetUS sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join BetUS today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLII and beyond!

(Charles Jay of TotalActionExtra.com is a member of the NFL too - that is, "not for long" if you don't get results. He is now a regular contributor to the BetUS.com Locker Room)