The Bears are now co-favorites to win the NFC at multiple major Las Vegas sportsbooks
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www.cbssports.com]
The Chicago Bears have yet to win a game through two weeks of the 2019 preseason, but that's not stopping Las Vegas from boosting their chances of an NFC title ahead of the real games in September.
A year after winning the NFC North with a 12-4 record and making their first playoff appearance in eight years, the Bears are now co-favorites not only to repeat as division champions but to claim the entire conference, according to multiple major Vegas sportsbooks.
Listed below are the latest NFC title odds from MGM and Westgate, with odds indicating how much bettors stand to win for a $100 bet. For example, +400 odds indicate a potential $400 win with a $100 bet and therefore represent 4/1 odds.
MGM odds
Saints +400
Bears +400
Packers +500
Rams +600
Eagles +600
Cowboys +600
Vikings +800
Westgate
Saints +500
Bears +500
Rams +500
Eagles +500
Cowboys +800
Packers +900
Vikings +900
The Bears aren't necessarily a bad bet to make a run at an NFC title, especially when you consider the other co-favorites at MGM, the New Orleans Saints and an aging Drew Brees, might also be due for regression. But Chicago's preseason rise is perhaps just as notable because of the teams listed with worse odds to win the conference.
Take the Philadelphia Eagles, for example, who own 6-to-1 odds at Westgate but are arguably even deeper and more talented than their Super Bowl-winning team from two years ago -- after knocking off the Bears in the 2018 playoffs. The Los Angeles Rams are another team with surprisingly low odds in comparison to the Bears considering they're fresh off their own Super Bowl trip and, like the Eagles, arguably boast an all-around better roster from top to bottom.
Is this Bears optimism a sign of good things to come? Or are the 2018 darlings headed for regression? We'll get our first indication in a few short weeks.
