The Embarrassing Kirk Cousins Stat That Will Have You Running to Bet the Bears on Monday Night
Monday Night Football in Week 10 features a divisional matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. The Vikings are a 3.5-point road favorite and the total is set at 44.5.
Kirk Cousins has the Vikings playing like a new team in the last few weeks, while the Bears have sputtered to three straight losses after starting the season 5-1. Most of the betting public is expecting those trends to continue, but Cousins’ embarrassing MNF record should have you running to bet the underdog.
The Vikings are 3.5-point favorites against the Bears
The Bears currently sit at 5-4 nine weeks into the 2020-21 NFL season. Meanwhile, the Vikings come into the game with a 3-5 record and a last-place spot in the NFC North standings. With the Bears being at home and sporting a much better record, you would think Chicago would be favored on Monday night.
But that isn’t the case. The last-place Vikings are actually 3.5-point favorites against the Bears in this week’s edition of Monday Night Football, and recent form might explain why.
The Vikings have rattled off two straight wins after starting the season 1-5. They upset Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in Lambeau then handled the Detroit Lions at home in back-to-back weeks. Minnesota has Dalvin Cook to thank for that.
Cook has rushed for 369 yards and scored six total touchdowns over the Vikings’ last two games. The offensive line has started playing like an elite unit, and Cook is taking advantage.
On the other sideline, the Bears enter MNF on a three-game losing streak. Chicago has scored just 16.6 points per game during their recent slide, and Nick Foles is starting to show signs of regression.
Both teams are going in opposite directions more than halfway through the season, which is enough to make the Vikings a short favorite on MNF.
Kirk Cousins is 0-9 on Monday Night Football
With the way these teams have played over the last few weeks, bettors are running to the window to take the road favorite. But those bettors might want to think twice before putting their hard-earned cash on Kirk Cousins this week.
Over the course of his career, Cousins is 0-9 straight up and against the spread on Monday Night Football. That’s the longest losing streak on MNF in NFL history. He’s posted a 39 total QBR over those nine games.
Cousins has thrown just 12 touchdown passes in nine Monday night appearances. He’s committed eight turnovers and led the Vikings to only 17.2 points per game on Monday nights.
Back the Bears on MNF
Kirk Cousins’ track record on Monday Night Football alone should be enough to go grab a Bears ticket, but there’s more than just his weeknight woes that lean toward Chicago in this game.
Clearly, the game plan for the Vikings will be to feed Dalvin Cook and take the pressure off Cousins, but that won’t work the way it has in recent weeks. In three career games against the Bears, Cook has 34 carries for 86 rushing yards and one touchdown. Combined! The Vikings lost all three of those games. Chicago will load the box and shut down the star running back to make Cousins win the game with his arm, which is something he hasn’t accomplished in nine career Monday night games.
Cousins hasn’t beat the Bears since he joined the Vikings. Don’t expect that to change on MNF.
All stats courtesy of ESPN Stats and Info
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