Chicago @ Carolina
Team Totals: Bears 25, Panthers 22.5
“I want to have the highest-scoring offense ever, which happens to be the 2013 Denver Broncos,” Bears HC Ben Johnson confidently stated on Aug. 16. “I know how many points per game they scored (37.9), and I want to surpass them. I want blowouts.” Not only are Johnson’s comments worth taking seriously because of his own decorated offensive résumé, but those scoring aspirations may be partly forced into fruition due to a swinging-gate defense I’ll detail a few paragraphs down. Especially in favorable weather — Sunday’s forecast for Bank of America Stadium depicts temperatures in the 80s, mostly sunny skies, and next to no wind — this will be a Fire The Cannons offense all season, beginning with Caleb Williams, who begins the year with the NFL’s seventh-shortest MVP odds on DraftKings (+1200). Williams’ Week 1 matchup improved when Carolina lost sophomore breakout candidate EDGE Nic Scourton to an ACL tear on the first day of training camp. … Kyle Monangai returned to practice Monday after missing three weeks of work with a knee injury and likely remains in a ramp-up phase. Especially because D’Andre Swift is so trusted in pass protection — and the 2026 Panthers are geared up to blitz more after signing blitz-proficient ILB Devin Lloyd to a three-year, $45 million deal in free agency — I think we’ll see Swift dominate snaps and touches over Monangai in Week 1.
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