The Andrew Luck era begins Sunday at Soldier Field. There was so much talk about teams tanking last season to get him, and the Colts ended up with him as their franchise quarterback. How will he handle stepping right into the starting spot? <\/p>\n
Indianapolis Colts vs. Chicago Bears<\/strong> Matchup<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Preview<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n The Bears have much higher expectations this year as the team has surrounded Jay Cutler with many more weapons. This is a re-match of Super Bowl XLI, even though both teams look almost nothing like they did in that big game.<\/p>\n Indianapolis<\/strong><\/p>\n After Peyton Manning was injured before the 2011-2012 season, it was a foregone conclusion that the Colts would have a long season. Still, most wouldn\u2019t have expected Indianapolis to win just two games all year.<\/p>\n Indianapolis is essentially starting all over this year. It has been a very successful franchise over the past decade. Now, it will be up to new guys to continue the team\u2019s long-term success.<\/p>\n Luck is obviously the main guy for the Colts. He looked pretty good this preseason, but the regular season is obviously a different animal.<\/p>\n The Colts running game will be Donald Brown, Delone Carter, and Vick Ballard in the first couple downs. Mewelde Moore was brought in is a third-down back. Indianapolis was miserably bad in the running game last season.<\/p>\n The offensive line is brand new, which might not be a bad thing when you consider how bad there were last year. Luck\u2019s main receivers will be Reggie Wayne and Austin Collie.<\/p>\n Defensively, Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are two terrific pass rushers. Other than that, the Colts made a big move to shore up the secondary when they grabbed Vontae Davis in the offseason. Antoine Bethea is the vocal leader at the safety spot. [soliloquy id=”82219″]<\/p>\n Chicago<\/strong><\/p>\n For many years it has been tough to gauge Jay Cutler because he hasn\u2019t had very good weapons around him. Devin Hester is a great play maker, but when he is your number one receiver you know you need to upgrade that position. The Bears did that in a big way over the offseason. Brandon Marshall is now the team\u2019s top wideout, and rookie Alshon Jeffery should be the second wide receiver.<\/p>\n This means Chicago has two big explosive receivers on the outside. Expect a big improvement in the Bears passing game. Cutler will need to take care of the ball better, and he\u2019ll have to make sure he checks down when there isn\u2019t anything open deep. Matt Forte was re-signed and he should be the main man in the backfield.<\/p>\n The Bears offensive line has been a problem area the last few years, but they improved a lot at the end of last season.<\/p>\n Chicago\u2019s defense is anchored by Brian Urlacher, but he isn\u2019t completely healthy yet after a severe knee injury last season. He\u2019ll play in this game, but he won\u2019t be full speed. Julius Peppers registered 11 sacks last year, and he is a beast on the defensive front. Lance Briggs is a play maker at the outside linebacker spot. The entire secondary from last year returns, and they were 7th in the NFL in pass defense last season.<\/p>\n The Colts offense is too one-dimensional to score a bunch against a solid defense like the Bears. Chicago will likely jump out to a lead and then coast home in this one.<\/p>\n
\n Soldier Field<\/strong>
\n Sunday September 9, 1:00 PM EST on CBS<\/strong>
\n NFL Betting Odds from TopBet<\/strong>
\n Moneyline: Chicago (-500) Indianapolis (+400)<\/strong>
\n NFL Spread: Bears -10 (-110) vs. Colts +10 (-110)<\/strong>
\n Over\/Under: 43.5<\/strong><\/p>\n