Take the Cowboys to win and cover in Chicago, with more to play for
Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys throws a pass in the first quarter against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Nov. 23, 2014. Credit: Jim McIsaac
COWBOYS (8-4) at BEARS (5-7), 8:25 p.m.TV: NFL.
Radio: WCBS (880).
LINE: Cowboys by 3 1/2; O/U: 51 1/2
Dallas and Chicago were like the black sheep of the family on Thanksgiving: They both got into some arguments, they didn't have a great holiday meal, and ultimately left the party with hurt feelings.
Both teams suffered losses on Thanksgiving, and look to rebound tonight with one-quarter of the season remaining.
This is a huge game for Dallas, which needs a victory here to set up a Week 15 rematch at first-place Philly, which beat Dallas, 33-10, last Thursday night. The game in 10 days could very well decide the NFC East and determine which team makes the playoffs, because the Eagles have a tough home game vs. Seattle on Sunday.
The Bears are 13-15 overall under coach Marc Trestman, but are just 9-18-1 against the spread (ATS) in his tenure. Chicago had a single-game, franchise-low eight rushing attempts in their 34-17 Turkey Day loss at Detroit. QB Jay Cutler, who dropped back to pass 51 times in the defeat, has a 3-4 record on Thursdays (9 TDs, 13 INTs) but is 2-0 lifetime vs. Dallas.
Both teams are an iffy bet with mediocre record ATS this season: Chicago is 5-7 and Dallas 6-6. Cowboys QB Tony Romo has a career record of 14-19 in December. However, he is 7-3 in Thursday night games with 22 TDs and 9 INTs. Dallas is 5-0 overall this season on the road.
The better team, with more to play for, not only wins but covers.
The pick: Cowboys
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