Chiefs-Bears Week 3 predictions from Arrowhead Pride

In Week 2, Arrowhead Pride staffers thought the Kansas City Chiefs would prevail over the Jacksonville Jaguars — but most thought it would be a close game with more scoring. So our composite prediction of a 33-26 victory was a bit removed from the Chiefs’ 17-9 win. Our readers were even more convinced there would be more scoring. None of the staffers predicted a blowout win — but 9% of the readers did. And while 75% of the staffers thought it would be a close Chiefs victory, just half of our readers believed that.

In Week 3, the Chiefs face the Chicago Bears at Arrowhead Stadium. According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Kansas City is favored by 12.5 points.

Let’s see what the staff — and our readers — think about the matchup.

Nate Christensen (@natech32)

The Bears have had a catastrophic week; there’s no other way of saying it. When your general manager has to call an emergency press conference to try and put out fires in the media, it’s not a sign of a healthy culture. While their coaches can say that they’re focusing all their energy on the Chiefs, it’s not plausible to expect this to not affect the players in some way. I think the Chiefs have a significant advantage in every single spot — and when you combine that with the Bears’ current culture issues, I expect a massive blowout.

Chiefs 38, Bears 10

John Dixon (@Arrowheadphones)

I’m generally inclined to avoid taking a big point spread — and I tend to regard a team that’s just lost a coach (or coordinator) as a very dangerous opponent. But in this game, I’m buying the spread. Maybe it’s because Alan Williams resigned rather than being fired — or maybe it’s because it happened so early in the season — but I just don’t see the off-the-field situation galvanizing the team. And in my opinion, Justin Fields shouldn’t have walked back his remarks. When he did, he lost all chance of leading his teammates out of the woods. Don’t get me wrong: he shouldn’t have said what he did. But once he did, he should have stood his ground. Opportunity once lost is opportunity lost forever.

Chiefs 31, Bears 9

Ron Kopp Jr. (@Ron_Kopp)

This game is not the walk in the park that a chaotic week in Chicago will make you believe it is. It will be a challenge for the Chiefs’ defense to continue its excellent play because of Justin Fields’ athleticism. He presents a different threat than the pocket quarterbacks they’ve faced the first two weeks — especially if the young signal caller is ready to cut it loose. Good thing the Chiefs’ offense will roll, bringing the explosive pass offense back to life against a Bears’ defense that has allowed the league’s second-most yards per play.

Chiefs 34, Bears 22

Rocky Magaña (@RockyMagana)

This has been a bad week for Chicago. But the team’s talent level just isn’t sufficient for it to hang with Kansas City — especially since the Bears will not have the benefit of a home crowd spurring them on. The Chiefs now have the league’s highest pass-blocking win rate (78%) — and this matchup should be viewed as a get-right game for the offense. This shouldn’t be a one-score game. In fact, anything less than a 14-point victory is going to leave some questions for which we will need answers.

Chiefs 38, Bears 17

Jared Sapp (@TrumanChief)

The Bears have had what might be the craziest week of any team I’ve ever seen. Though there is some worry that the team will rally to the moment, I’m just not sure there’s any evidence it is capable of doing so. After looking inept against Jordan Love and Baker Mayfield in the first two weeks of the season, the Chicago defense should allow the Chiefs to finally show signs of coming together. A running quarterback like the Bears’ Justin Fields will likely make the Kansas City defense look a bit more fallible than it appeared last week — but especially without its starting left tackle, the Chicago offense won’t be able to do enough. A garbage-time score — and Kansas City playing to drain the clock — will prevent the Chiefs from hitting this week’s large point spread.

Chiefs 24, Bears 13

Stephen Serda (@StephenSerda)

It’s tempting to think that the Chiefs offense will have one of their classic play-down-to-the-competition moments against the Bears — but I just don’t see it happening. Through two weeks, this Bears team not only has one of the worst defenses in football, but also an offense that can’t move the ball. Maybe Justin Fields will run more — but when he was successful doing that last year, that wasn’t a recipe for winning games. Even with the doubts about the Chiefs’ pass-catchers, Patrick Mahomes will be too much for the Chicago secondary to slow down. Mahomes will get back to form this week — and the defense will continue to dominate.

Chiefs 35, Bears 17

Matt Stagner (@stagdsp)

This is a weird game to predict. On paper, the defending champs have more than enough talent to make it a blowout. The best quarterback in the league — and the stability of the Chiefs’ coaching staff — stand in sharp contrast to a Bears team in chaos. There really aren’t too many individual threats on the Chicago offense that should be of major concern to the much-improved Kansas City defense. They should continue the streak of strong performances to start the 2023 season, holding the Bears under 21 points — and probably forcing a turnover or two. The Chiefs’ offense should absolutely have a get-right game against an unimpressive Bears defense. Look for big games from Mahomes and Skyy Moore — and an emphasis on getting an early lead and not letting a lesser team get too close.

Chiefs 38, Bears 13

Pete Sweeney (@pgsween)

The Chiefs’ defense has offered nothing but positive signs in these first two weeks of the NFL season. On Sunday, I think it stands to look even better as defensive tackle Chris Jones’ snaps increase. The Patrick Mahomes-led offense needs to look much better than it has — and coming to Arrowhead is the 24th-ranked defense with the 31st-ranked pass rush (Pro Football Focus). With my call for the game enhanced by Justin Fields’ double-presser and the sudden resignation of the Bears’ defensive coordinator, give me the Chiefs in a laugher.

Chiefs 34, Bears 10

Prop bets

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