Chicago Bears Travel to Washington for Monday Night Football as Both Teams Seek Answers

Posted on: September 22, 2019, 03:55h. 

Last updated on: September 23, 2019, 10:10h.

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Monday Night Football heads to the nation’s capital for a matchup of a couple of teams that come into the primetime game with question marks. Washington looks for its first win on the season, while the Chicago Bears are looking to rev up the offense.

Chicago Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky has faced a lot of pressure in two games this season. He’s set to face a Washington team on Monday that’s under pressure to avoid starting the season 0-3. (Image: Mike DiNovo/USA TODAY Sports)

Coming off a wild, last-second Week Two victory on the road at Denver, the Bears are favored. However, the lines as of Sunday afternoon are all over the place.

At Caesars, the Bears are spotting 5.5 points to the Redskins. It’s a five-point spread at William Hill, while DraftKings gives the Skins 4.5 points. FanDuel lists the Bears as just a four-point favorite.

Oddsmakers expect both teams to struggle offensively, at least from a points perspective. Caesars and William Hill list the over/under at 41, while FanDuel offers it a half-point higher. The over/under at DraftKings is 40.5.

Kickoff is set for 8:15 pm ET, with ESPN broadcasting the game.

Chicago QB Under Pressure

The key to the game will be whether the Washington defense can step up its game and put pressure on Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky. The third-year starter has struggled quite a bit in the first two games.

Trubisky has thrown for just 348 yards in the Bears first two games. His 58.3 percent completion rate is 27th among quarterbacks. Teams are blitzing and causing the former first-round draft pick to hurry more. Through the first two games, he’s had to hurry 18 times. Last season in 14 starts, he was pressured just 59 times.

However, the Redskins passing defense ranks among the NFL’s worst through the first two weeks. They’ve managed just six hits on quarterbacks, with only two sacks. Opposing quarterbacks have completed 78.3 percent of their passes against the Washington defense, the second-highest percentage in the league.

After losing to Dallas last week, Washington coach Jay Gruden described his team’s defense as “vanilla” in the first two games.

This is not what we envisioned,” linebacker Jon Bostic said. “But this is why you sign up for the game: the adversity that’s in it. It’s not about us going in and shutting down or putting our heads down. We still got 14 more, and we gotta take it one game at a time. We gotta keep putting our foot forward.”

A loss Monday night would put the Redskins at 0-3 on the season and would put a major crimp in their hopes to make the playoffs this season.

Passing Game Working for Washington

While there have been questions about the Bears quarterback, Redskins quarterback Case Keenum has been one of the bright spots for Washington through the first two weeks. His 300.5 passing yards per game ranks 10th in the league, and his five passing touchdowns are fourth-best.

However, he faces a Bears team on Monday night that ranks among the best defenses in the NFL. Only three teams have allowed fewer yards than the 585 Chicago allowed in the first two weeks.

The lack of a sustained ground game may haunt Washington moving forward. Gruden planned to use Derrius Guice as their lead running back, but a torn meniscus in his right knee means he’s out indefinitely.

Adrian Peterson got the start last week. While he rushed for more than 1,000 yards last season, Peterson is 34 years old. Active for the first time this season, he gained just 25 yards on 10 carries last week.