New England Patriots fans didn't have much to cheer about Monday night, but it's the betting public who may be feeling the effects of the "Monday Night Football" matchup for awhile.
The Chicago Bears traveled to Foxboro for a Week 7 matchup with the Patriots and punched New England in the mouth on their way to a dominant 33-14 victory. On offense, the Bears ran the ball down the Patriots' throats to the tune of 243 yards on the ground. On defense, Chicago forced four turnovers and kept New England's offense off the field.
All in all, it was a dominant victory for a Bears team that desperately needed one. But that's not how most people believed things were supposed to go.
The Patriots entered this matchup as 8.5-point favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook, commanding 88% of the tickets and 85% of the total money placed on the moneyline, per DraftKings data analyst Cassie Buontempo. Only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (88% tickets and 92% handle) had a worse day for the betting public, though they were 13-point favorites headed into a matchup with the Carolina Panthers.
A mix of bad quarterback play from both Mac Jones AND Bailey Zappe, horrid third-down run defense (the Bears converted 11-of-18 third downs) and poor game management by the coaching staff contributed to one of the worst Patriots losses in recent memory -- for fans and bettors.
New England (3-4) enters its Week 8 matchup with the New York Jets (4-3) as 2.5-point favorites at DraftKings.
