The Chicago Bears (2-1) will square off against the New York Giants (2-1) on Sunday, where Chicago will be looking to make it four straight against New York.
The Bears are coming off a narrow victory against the Houston Texans (0-2-1, which left more questions about their abysmal passing game. Meanwhile, the Giants suffered a brutal defeat to the Dallas Cowboys (2-1), their first loss of the season.
Here’s a rundown of what we know heading into Sunday’s game against the Giants:
How to watch
Game information:
Who: Chicago Bears (2-1) vs. New York Giants (2-1)
When: Sunday, Oct. 1, Noon CT
Where: MetLife Stadium – East Rutherford, NJ
Streaming:
In-market live stream: fuboTV (try it for free).
Broadcast:
TV: FOX
Radio: WBBM 780 (Chicago)
Broadcast map:
Bears-Giants (BLUE)
Betting odds
The Bears are considered 3.5-point road underdogs against the Giants, according to Tipico Sportsbook. The over/under is 39.5.
Game-day roster
Here’s a look at the Bears’ game-day roster:
Game picks
- Alyssa Barbieri: 17-16 Bears
- Brendan Sugrue: 22-20 Bears
- Ryan Fedrau: 27-17 Giants
- Jarrett Bailey: 23-20 Giants
Bold predictions
- Justin Fields doesn’t break 200 passing yards yet again
- Khalil Herbert rushes for 150+ yards for the 2nd week in a row
- Someone not named Justin Fields will throw a TD pass
- The Bears total at least 4 sacks
- Jaquan Brisker gets his first career interception
Who has the advantage?
In our weekly preview series, Alyssa Barbieri from Bears Wire and Dan Benton from Giants Wire went deep into the matchup to determine who has the advantage at the five key factors for winning football games in the NFL.
- Quarterback play: Giants
- Line of scrimmage: Giants
- Turnovers: Bears
- Situational: Bears
- Injuries: Giants
- Verdict: Advantage Giants
Last meeting: 29-3 Bears (Jan. 2, 2022)
The Bears and Giants will play for the fifth straight year, where Chicago has won the last three meetings. Last January, the Bears dominated the Giants in a 29-3 win, where they sacked then-backup quarterback Mike Glennon four times, at Soldier Field.
Team rankings
| CHI | NYG | |
| Points per game | 17.3 (20th) | 18.7 (18th) |
| Points allowed per game | 19.0 (11th) | 19.7 (12th) |
| Turnover differential | +1 (T-11th) | 0 (T-13th) |
| Passing yards per game | 78.3 (32nd) | 162.3 (30th) |
| Rushing yards per game | 186.7 (2nd) | 169.3 (4th) |
| Passing yards allowed per game | 201.0 (9th) | 203.3 (10th) |
| Rushing yards allowed per game | 157.0 (30th) | 138.3 (25th) |
| Sacks allowed | 10 (27th) | 13 (30th) |
| Sacks against | 6 (T-22nd) | 3 (30th) |
via Team Rankings
Giants players to watch
QB Daniel Jones: It’s been more of the same for Daniel Jones entering his fourth season in the NFL. He isn’t having a ton of success throwing the ball, but he’s finding ways to get through defenses with the help of his legs. Jones has just 560 yards passing and his quarterback rating has dropped by about 30 points in each game he’s played since Week 1. He does have 125 rushing yards, though, and his legs could be the key to the Giants moving the ball. The Bears can stop Jones by making him uncomfortable in the pocket, while also ensuring he doesn’t have room to run.
RB Saquon Barkley: Like the Bears, the rushing attack has been stellar for the Giants through three games. Unlike the Bears, however, it’s all been thanks to one running back. Saquon Barkley is having a remarkable bounce back season, ranking second in the league in rushing yards. He has 317 yards on 53 rushing attempts with two touchdowns. He’s the key to the Giants offensive success and now he faces the Bears, who allowed his only 100-yard rushing game of the year when he faced them in 2021.
WR Richie James: With receivers Sterling Shepard, Wandale Robinson, and Kadarius Toney injured, as well as Kenny Golladay and Darius Slayton staying in the Brian Daboll doghouse, the Giants top pass catching target appears to be veteran Richie James. Through three games, James has 14 catches for 146 yards. He’s the only healthy wide receiver for the Giants to have double-digit targets and will likely be Jones’ favorite target on Sunday. James is on his way towards having a career year, already approaching his yearly average output when he was with the San Francisco 49ers the last few seasons. He’s the player to keep an eye on when the Giants look to pass.
OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux: The wait for Kayvon Thibodeaux finally ended last week when the rookie defensive end made his NFL debut. Thibodeaux was injured during the preseason and missed the Giants first couple of weeks. But he took the field for the first time this season on Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys. Thibodeaux didn’t pop off on the stat sheet, totaling just one tackle and batting down a pass, but he was getting work in against the Cowboys tackles trying to get to Cooper Rush. The former Oregon star is still working his way back from injury but he should be more impactful this week and shouldn’t be taken lightly.
CB Adoree’ Jackson: Perhaps it is a biproduct of facing lesser quarterbacks, but the Giants secondary is quietly having a decent start to the year. The Giants are just behind the Bears, allowing 203 yards per game through the air. A big reason for that has been because of Adoree’ Jackson. The veteran cornerback has allowed one touchdown, courtesy of a one-handed grab by CeeDee Lamb in the Giants last game, but is only allowing a completion percentage of 55 on 20 targets. The Giants secondary still doesn’t have an interception on the year, but Jackson could be that guy to break the drought if Justin Fields has another rough outing.
— Brendan Sugrue
Matchups to watch
- Saquon Barkley vs. Bears run defense
- Bears OC Luke Getsy vs. Giants DC Wink Martindale
- Giants OL vs. Bears pass rush
Injuries to know
Bears: CB Jaylon Johnson (out, quad), RB David Montgomery (out, ankle), S Dane Cruikshank (out, hamstring), LB Matt Adams (doubtful, hamstring), TE Ryan Griffin (doubtful, Achilles), WR Velus Jones Jr. (questionable, hamstring), DE Robert Quinn (questionable, illness), K Cairo Santos (questionable, personal), LB Sterling Weatherford (questionable, ankle)
Giants: WR Wan’Dale Robinson (out, knee), CB Nick McCloud (out, hamstring), WR Kadarius Toney (out, hamstring), DL Leonard Williams (out, knee), CB Cor’Dale Flott (out, calf)
Storyline to watch: Can the Bears contain Saquon Barkley?
While the Giants offensive line struggles to protect Daniel Jones, they excel at run blocking. Heading into Sunday’s game against Chicago, the Giants are averaging 169.3 rushing yards per game (4th in NFL), with star running back Saquon Barkley leading the way.
In his fifth year, Barkley has rebounded back into form and looks like the guy who won Rookie of the Year. The Penn State product has 317 yards rushing (2nd in the NFL) and averages 6.0 yards per rush.
Chicago has one of the worst defenses for stopping the run. The Bears have allowed 471 yards (157 yards per game) and 4.8 yards per rush after the first three weeks. It’s a recipe for disaster: great run-blocking offensive line, superstar running back, and horrible run defense.
Add in that Chicago will be without cornerback Jaylon Johnson and likely without linebacker Matt Adams. The Bears will have limited depth and will have to find a way to stop the Giants from doing the only thing they do well. — Nate Atkins
