The New Orleans Saints continue to pass every test in the 2019 NFL season. The defending NFC South champions defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road in Week 6, improving their record to 5-1.

New Orleans is a perfect 4-0 since Teddy Bridgewater replaced the injured Drew Brees at starting quarterback. The Saints handed the first-place Dallas Cowboys their first loss of the season. The Seattle Seahawks would be undefeated if they hadn’t been beaten at home by New Orleans. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were playing well until they were defeated soundly in the Superdome.

Even as the Saints continue to roll, they are underdogs for a second consecutive game.

The Chicago Bears are favored by three points over the Saints at Soldier Field in Week 7, according to the latest betting line at OddsShark. The over/under for Sunday’s contest is 38.5.

It’s been a few weeks since the Bears last picked up a victory. Chicago was upset by the Oakland Raiders in London in Week 5. The Bears are coming off their bye.

Chase Daniel threw two interceptions in the 24-21 loss to Oakland. The quarterback might be headed back to the bench now that Mitchell Trubisky has returned to practice. Trubisky injured his shoulder early in Chicago’s Week 4 game against the Minnesota Vikings, though the Bears won 16-6 with Daniel taking the majority of the snaps.

Chicago has an elite defense, despite a rare underwhelming performance in their last game. The team still ranks fourth in opponents’ yards per play and third in scoring defense. The Bears are sixth in total defense.

Whether it’s Daniel or Trubisky under center, the Bears struggle to move the ball. Chicago is 30th in both yards per play and total offense. The offense hasn’t produced more than 23 points in any of their five games.

The defending NFC North champs might not need a bunch of touchdowns to beat the Saints. New Orleans has been held to 13 points or fewer in two of Bridgewater's starts.

But the Saints have proven that they are more than comfortable winning a low-scoring game.

New Orleans beat Jacksonville 13-6 last week. The Jaguars averaged 24.3 points in Gardner Minshew’s previous three starts. The Saints beat the Cowboys 12-10. Dallas has scored at least 22 points in every other game. Even when New Orleans beat Seattle 33-27, the Seahawks scored two touchdowns in the game’s final three minutes when the outcome had already been decided.

The Saints’ defense has actually been better than the Bears’ defense in recent weeks. New Orleans ranks fourth in opponents’ yards per play over their last three games. Chicago is eighth.

In a close game that hasn’t seen many points scored, the Saints have the more reliable quarterback to make big plays down the stretch.

Bridgewater hasn’t put up big numbers. He just continues to do what’s asked of him, completing at least two-thirds of his passes in each start. The quarterback is averaging 231 passing yards and a 104.4 passer rating per start.

Trubisky hasn’t thrown for more than 231 yards in a game this season. His only good performance came against a bad Washington Redskins’ defense. The quarterback has a sub-90.0 passer rating in each of his last five starts.

New Orleans is simply the better team. Chicago shouldn’t be laying a field goal, even at home, against possibly the best team in the entire conference.

The Saints are perfect against the spread in their last four games. Keep rolling with New Orleans until someone knocks them off.

Prediction: New Orleans over Chicago, 19-16

Michael Thomas Saints Rams
Michael Thomas #13 of the New Orleans Saints runs a pass in for a touchdown during a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on November 4, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Wesley Hitt/Getty Images
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