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Predicting the Final Score of Bears vs. Falcons In Week 6

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Julio Jones Atlanta Falcons

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This Sunday’s matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and Chicago Bears may not be hyped like the Dallas Cowboys against the Seattle Seahawks, but it is the most important game on the Week 6 NFL schedule.

Both teams desperately need a win, and with both sitting at 2-3, the loser of this game will take a serious blow to their playoff hopes in 2014. The game is in the Georgia Dome, and the Falcons currently sit as a 3.5-point favorite in Vegas.

The safest bet in this game is that there should be plenty of points on the board. Both teams love the aerial attack. Matt Ryan is second in the NFL in passing yards, and Julio Jones sits atop all receivers in yardage with 552. The Bears’ passing attack is just as dangerous with Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery and secondary options Martellus Bennett and Matt Forte. Chicago’s offense hasn’t clicked as well as many thought they would, but with a questionable Falcons defense that ranks 28th in the NFL, it’s a great week for the Bears to get healthy.

Chicago’s defense isn’t as porous as it was in 2013, but Mike Singletary and Richard Dent aren’t lining up on Sunday either. The Bears’ defense is mediocre at best, and with a young secondary and issues at safety, Ryan has been drooling all week waiting to pick apart the secondary.

The storyline that has gotten the most play this week is Devin Hester’s first game against his former team. Hester left Chicago in the offseason for Atlanta and has been outstanding so far this season. The Bears’ return teams have been awful without Hester, and their special teams coverage is just as bad. Hester is chomping at the bit to have a huge game in Atlanta on Sunday and send a message loud and clear to Chicago’s front office that he is far from finished.

A major issue for the Bears over the last few games has been their second-half play. After a hot start against the New York Jets, they had to cling to a victory in the fourth quarter, and the Bears have lost their last two games while scoring a combined three second-half points in each of those contests. If Chicago is going to end up in the win column on Sunday, they are going to have to play better offensively in the second 30 minutes.

Atlanta’s defense continues to be a problem for them. They are averaging over 30 points per game offensively, including a 56-point explosion on Thursday Night Football against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3, but their defense is giving up the fourth most points in the NFL, including giving up 41 and 30 in their last two outings.

It’s hard to imagine the Bears containing the Ryan-Jones duo very well, and if the Bears kick to Hester, you would have to imagine a big return, possibly a score, for him as well. You could probably expect both offenses to get off to quick starts scoring almost at will in the first half.

The second half is going to be the difference in this game. If the Bears buck their current trend and play well, this game is going to go down to the wire, but at this point, there is no reason to think that their second-half play will improve with yet another road game.

Expect the Bears’ offense to stumble in the third quarter, whether that be due to a lack of adjustments from Marc Trestman or one or two untimely turnovers by Jay Cutler. The Falcons will take advantage of short fields thanks to turnovers and a couple pf big Hester returns, and they will burn the Bears for plenty of points. Expect this one to be a shootout, with the home team coming out victorious.

Final score: Falcons 41, Bears 30

Bill Zimmerman is a Chicago Bears writer for www.RantSports.Com. Follow him on Twitter, like him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.

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