Chicago Bears

2005 Stats

2005 Season Summary

Bad news got worse

The Chicago Bears were coming off their third consecutive losing season as they finished a dismal 5-11 in head coach Lovie Smith's rookie season as headman. The Bears had the NFL's worst offense in 2004 and allowed the most sacks in the process. Bad news became even worse during the summer as Rex Grossman, who was slated to be the Bears' number one quarterback, was injured before the first snap of preseason thrusting Kyle Orton into the starting slot. The Bears were written off for dead by most prognosticators and more than a few experts before the season even began as the Minnesota Vikings were touted not just as NFC Central favorites, but legitimate Super Bowl contenders to be followed by traditional playoff qualifier Green Bay and what was expected to be an up and coming Detroit team primed for a breakout year.

The preseason began a week early as the Bears drew a Hall of Fame game assignment against Miami , as their new head coach Nick Saban made his NFL preseason debut. Chicago entered preseason as just a 33% play ATS the previous three years and many expected Miami to come out strong for Saban. The Bears prevailed 27-24 as 3-point chalks for a push.

Smith next went home to St. Louis , where he served as defensive coordinator before becoming the Head Bear. The Bears lost 13-17 as 2.5-point dogs as Rams mentor Mike Martz, already under fire, had the incentive to show up his old assistant.

Next was a trip to Indianapolis where the Bears were whopping 6-point dogs against a Colts team that was very open about trying to avoid preseason injuries. Chicago got the cash in a 24-17 win. The Bears repeated with another win and cover at home against Buffalo , 16-12 as 3-point dogs.

In the preseason finale at home against Cleveland , the Bears were installed as 1-point chalks against a Browns team that was a 67% ATS play as a preseason puppy since 2000. Cleveland had also covered all three of their previous exhibitions entering this tilt and kept form with a 16-6 win as the Bears finished exhibition play 3-2 SU and 2-2-1 ATS.

Starting off as “go against” team

Kyle Orton was off and on at QB for the Bears during preseason and Chicago was going to have to rely on a strong defense in order to avoid a disaster season. As the 2005 regular season approached nearly all pro football bettors ignored the Bears, except as a probable “go against” team.

Chicago traveled to Washington to face another team with offensive struggles in the Redskins, who were installed as 5.5-point chalks. The over/under on the board was a low 33. Washington won a 9-7 slugfest as Chicago got the cash in an easy “under.”

The home opener against Detroit was next. The Lions were coming off a home opening win over Green Bay and were touted to be on the way to a breakout season. With this hype, and the public's sour attitude towards the Bears, Detroit was the 1.5-point chalk. In a game that was to serve as a portent of things to come for both teams Chicago blasted Detroit 38-6 as the Bears defense destroyed Lion QB Joey Harrington with 5 interceptions.

After that near flawless performance against Detroit , the Bears hosted a true up and coming team in 2-0 Cincinnati . The Bengals were so respected that they were installed as the 3-point road chalk and won with ease 24-7 as the Bears offensive woes were exploited for all to see. Chicago drew an early bye at 1-2 SU and 2-1 ATS. At this point, the gambling establishment still lightly regarded them.

The Bears did nothing to inspire confidence in their first game after the bye as they traveled to rebuilding Cleveland and lost 10-20 as 3-point dogs, (which illustrates how lightly regarded they still were), posting their second straight under in the process. The Chicago offense was so inept that nobody could realistically expect the roll that was to come.

Completely written off

Now completely written off at 1-3 SU after a loss to a weak Cleveland team the Bears caught a break as scandal ridden Minnesota came calling to Soldier Field. At first the Bears seemed an odd chalk at –3, but Minnesota was truly reeling and the Bears had a solid defense in their favor, which came though in a 28-3 win for Chicago 's 3 rd consecutive under.

The schedule maker continued to bless the Bears as struggling Baltimore visited the Windy City next. The Ravens' offensive woes matched the Bears and the oddsmakers posted a defiant over/under of 30.5, begging bettors to be sucked into the over. Chicago won a game fit for the stone ages 10-6, easily posting their 4 th straight under and 2 nd consecutive win and cover.

The Bears next traveled to desperate Detroit , still under the radar screen of most gamblers. Detroit was a 3-point chalk, but the Bears defense suffocated the Lions yet again in a 19-13 Chicago win that pushed against the over/under. The Bears caught another scheduling break as they traveled to LSU's Tiger Stadium to face the displaced New Orleans Saints, who were in the midst of a nightmare season. Chicago pushed a 20-17 win that was their first over in 6 games.

Attracting attention

The Bears stood at 5-3 SU and 5-2-1 ATS at the halfway point and began to attract a little bit of attention as their defense was difficult for gamblers to ignore. Still, they proved unready to carry serious lumber as they failed to cover as 17-9 home winners over the 13-point dog 49ers.

The Bears carried a 5-game SU winning streak into a home game against NFC South contender Carolina , who was on their own 6-game SU winning streak. The Bears were a bargain 3-point home dog that attracted some attention from gamblers. Chicago bit hard with a 13-3 win that easily went under the total. The next caught another break from the schedule maker as they traveled to Tampa Bay to face a Bucs team coming off an emotional 30-27 win at rival Atlanta , which made them primed for a letdown. The Bucs were also playing inexperienced backup QB Chris Simms and the Bears defense took full advantage in a 13-10 win as 3-point dogs as they posted their 4 th straight under. They next hosted Green Bay in a Sunday Night showcase that they easily won and covered 19-7 for a 5 th straight under. After 8 consecutive SU that was capped off by beating their arch rival, a let down was inevitable as the Bears fell at up and coming Pittsburgh 9-21. They did win 2 of their final 3 SU to take the NFC Central crown.

Chicago hosted Carolina in the playoff and lost 21-29 as 2.5-point chalks against a more playoff savvy and complete Panther team that exposed Chicago 's defensive weaknesses in sending the game over the total.