Miami Dolphins vs Chicago Bears Odds, Lines, and Picks

• The Chicago Bears are 3.5-point home favorites over the Miami Dolphins in their Saturday, August 14 NFL preseason game at Soldier Field
• The game features an intriguing matchup of young quarterbacks, with Miami’s second-year QB Tua Tagovailoa and Chicago rookie Justin Fields
• See the odds, preview and a pick on the game below

After conducting joint practices Wednesday and Thursday in Illinois, the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins hit the Soldier Field turf Saturday, August 14th in each teams’ first preseason game of 2021. Chicago’s projected Week 1 starter, veteran quarterback Andy Dalton, is expected to play 8-10 snaps.

But much of the buzz around the Windy City is on former Ohio State Buckeye Justin Fields, the team’s first-round pick. Bears head coach Matt Nagy is expected to give the No. 11 overall pick some playing time Saturday. Meantime, Tagovailoa should play some series for Miami.

The home team is favored by 3.5 points in this preseason tilt.

The total is only 36 points, with the Bears a -180 favorite on the money line.

Miami Dolphins vs Chicago Bears Odds

Odds as of August 13th at DraftKings

The kickoff for Saturday’s game at Soldier Field is set for 1:00 pm ET. The game will be broadcast on NFL Network.

Fields of Dreams

The plan, for now, is for Dalton to be under center in the Bears’ Week 1 matchup of the regular season against the Rams on Sunday Night Football at SoFi Stadium. But look for Nagy to give Fields an opportunity Saturday to show why his elite arm strength, athleticism and play-action ability make him a possible starter this season.

Nagy says #Bears rookie QB Justin Fields will play into the second half Saturday vs. Miami after replacing starter Andy Dalton: "He's going to get a lot of reps," Nagy said of Fields. "The more reps that we can get him right now, the better."

— Larry Mayer (@LarryMayer) August 12, 2021

As for protecting the quarterback, Chicago spent its second-round pick on offensive lineman Teven Jenkins. But the Oklahoma State product remains sidelined with a back injury and has missed virtually all of training camp. Nagy downplayed the rookie’s absence Wednesday — calling it part of the process. But without Jenkins in action for the foreseeable future, it will be difficult to truly gauge what the Bears will look like on offense. Another player who may be limited — if he plays at all — is wide receiver, Allen Robinson.

Per Bears head coach Matt Nagy, Marquise Goodwin (foot) will be back at practice today against the Dolphins, as will Allen Robinson (hamstring).

— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) August 12, 2021

After missing Wednesday’s practice, getting Robinson back in the mix Thursday is a positive sign. He is coming off consecutive 1,000-yard receiving years and just had his first 100-catch campaign in Chicago. On top of that, Robinson is in a contract year as he is set to play under the franchise tag.

Tua Time?

The headline out of Dolphins camp has been the maturation of the team’s first-round selection last season. Coaches and teammates are talking about Tagovailoa’s second-year leap, especially his mastery of the playbook. The 23-year-old quarterback will get a chance to prove the praise is legitimate against a thin Bears’ secondary Saturday.

Tua Tagovailoa in Year 1:

Coming off career-threatening injury
Abnormal offseason
Terrible play-caller who didn’t fit
Subpar weapons in pass game
Unreliable complementary run game
3 rookie OL starters + 2 new FA

If you didn’t see a potential Year 2 leap coming, that’s on you.

— Clint Lamb (@ClintRLamb) August 4, 2021

After appearing in 10 games last season and dedicating his offseason to learning Miami’s system, teammates seem to be impressed with how much Tagovailoa picked up and noting the impact it has on practices. If Tagovailoa is more consistent in 2021 and lifts the ceiling on Miami’s offense, Miami can return to the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Of course,  if he doesn’t improve, head coach Brian Flores isn’t afraid to make a quarterback change — as evidenced by Thursday’s outing.

Injury Updates

Outside of the Chicago receiving corps dealing with some injury issues, the Bears offense is in relatively good shape. The defense, however, has a few players that may miss Saturday’s tilt with the Fins. Linebackers Roquan Smith (groin) and Danny Trevathan (knee) are questionable, as is cornerback Desmond Trufant (groin).

Miami is significantly more healthy going into Week 1 of the preseason, with the only injuries being to a handful of players on offense. Wide receivers Preston Williams (foot) and Albert Wilson (undisclosed), along with tight end Hunter Long (lower body) have missed practice time over the last week-plus. Of course, when considering the status of Miami players, one needs to consider head coach Brian Flores is a Bill Belichick disciple.

But Flores made clear in recent days that he's inclined to call every injury day to day (even something serious). Dolphins believe competitive advantage gained. Every team different.Panthers sent a press release with Ekblad's exact injury&timetable for return.Teams make this call https://t.co/8T6u6IHEu0

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) August 10, 2021

Dolphins vs Bears Pick

With Nagy committing to a heavy dose of Fields Saturday, bettors can look at that two ways. On one hand, the former Buckeye is supremely talented and should be able to take advantage of a Miami defensive unit in a preseason game. On the other, rookie quarterbacks invariably always have challenges early on. Plus, considering his quarterback counterpart.

With Tua’s accuracy never in question — and his knowledge of the playbook expanded — look for the Dolphins to be the smart play in this spot.

The pick: Dolphins +3.5 (-110)