(670 The Score) The Bears (3-4) host the 49ers (2-4) on Sunday afternoon.
WBBM Newsradio 780 will carry the game, with kickoff set for noon. 670 The Score's pregame show with Mike Mulligan, Olin Kreutz and Patrick Mannelly will start at 9 a.m. and run until kickoff. Our postgame show will start just after the final buzzer.
You can check out all of 670's preview coverage of the Bears-49ers matchup by clicking here. Below are the game predictions from our 670 hosts, producers and writers.
David Haugh (6-1): 49ers 21, Bears 17
I want to pick the Bears. I want to believe the offense is as close to a breakthrough as Justin Fields suggests. I want to think the defense can play well enough to win despite injury and illness questions. But I can't. Matt Nagy and the Bears have yet to earn the benefit of the doubt, even at home, even against a team with a four-game losing streak. This looks like a get-well game for the 49ers, whose run-oriented, play-action offense – with or without Jimmy Garoppolo – is what the Bears offense wants to be when it grows up.
Leila Rahimi (6-1): 49ers 27, Bears 17
I'm hoping that based on sheer probability that the Bears score more than their 14.4-point-per-game average, which ranks 30th in the NFL. Khalil Mack's uncertain status and injury woes continue to plague the Bears. The 49ers can score points, but it's not as sexy as the kids make it out to be. They average just 22.5 points. They're 2-4, you know. Maybe we should call this the "offensive genius bowl." OK, I swore I wouldn't go into another Football Dystopia again. OK fine, maybe it will be like San Francisco 7, Chicago 2. How's that for dystopia? Oh wait, we're living that.
Danny Parkins (5-2): Bears 24, 49ers 19
What happens if Nagy can't coach but the Bears win? Chaos! That's what I'm rooting for. So in a game that I think is a true toss-up, I'll pick with my heart.
Herb Lawrence (4-3): 49ers 31, Bears 13
The 49ers aren't that good, but the Bears are worse.
Adam Studzinski (4-3): Bears 21, 49ers 17
I'm honestly not sure how to predict this Bears team anymore. I think they'll win ... barely. Of course, 21 points is probably too bold for this terrible Nagy offense, but I'm doing it anyway. If they lose and the offense is still ugly as all hell, Nagy should be fired after the game.
Chris Emma (6-1): Bears 21, 49ers 20
This one could go either way, but I'm willing to buy in with the rookie Fields, who feels a breakthrough is coming. It may not be a pretty performance, but he'll pull through and lead the Bears to victory.
Cam Ellis (6-1): Bears 23, 49ers 21
Sour Patch Kids are the best overall candy, but Reese's pumpkins are the best Halloween-specific candy. 3 Musketeers are overrated. The 49ers are probably better than the Bears, but this just feels like a game the Bears win, if only to raise everyone's hopes before they go into Pittsburgh for a winnable game against the Steelers to put them over .500 and lay an egg. Enjoy!
Les Grobstein (6-1): 49ers 24, Bears 20
At this point, Mack may not be available Sunday, so I am picking the Niners.
Jay Zawaski (2-5): 49ers 21, Bears 17
Honestly, this feels like a winnable game for the Bears, but it doesn't look like Mack is going to play. There's also uncertainty about who will even coach the Bears on Sunday, and I just don't have a ton of faith right now. I keep clinging to the fact that the Bears somehow beat the Bengals, but that feels like a lifetime ago.
