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Why the Giants Will Win, Why They Won't, and a Week 17 Prediction

The Giants take on the Chicago Bears in what will be their final road game of the 2021 season.

If you're looking for a reason to tune into this weekend's Giants-Bears game, the outcome will potentially shape the 2022 NFL draft order.

The Giants, as we all know, own the Bears' first-round pick, a pick they received for allowing Chicago to trade up in last year's draft to select quarterback Justin Fields.

As things stand, the Giants are scheduled to draft fifth and eighth in the first round, the eighth spot being Chicago's pick. 

By defeating the Bears, the Giants can help push that eighth overall pick up at least a notch, depending on what the other teams around them do. And wouldn't that be a good deal given all the needs this team has to address this off-season?

Why the Giants Will Win?

The Giants might not be playing good football these days, but one thing you can't really say about them is that they haven't quit, even with things having turned dire.

And who knows? Maybe, just maybe, they'll come up against an opponent that, like them, is out of the playoffs and who hasn't been playing solid ball. Just maybe that will be enough for the Giants to find a way to squeak out an unexpected win and avoid extending their losing streak to five games, which would match last year's five-game losing streak that kicked off that season.

Why the Giants Will Lose

The Bears, like the Giants, might be out of the playoffs, but they still have a few milestones they'd no doubt like to accomplish before the season ends--milestones that are likely driving them.

The first is edge rusher Robert Quinn's pursuit of the Bears sacks record. Quinn 917 sacks) is chasing Richard Dent's sack record of 18 in a single season, that record accomplished in 16 games back in the day. If Quinn can break the record this week, he will have done it in fewer games than Dent (Quinn missed a game earlier this year).

Another Bears' goal is for receiver Darnell Mooney to inch closer to a 1,000-yard receiving season. Mooney is 140 yards short of that goal and probably won't get it against the Giants, as he's sure to draw quite a bit of attention by the defensive secondary. With Andy Dalton scheduled to be behind center for the Bears, Mooney has a better chance of successfully putting a nice dent in that remaining total.

Prediction

Both teams have broken offenses and decent defenses, but unlike the Giants, the Bears have at least had success moving the ball and scoring.

The Giants, who have scored at least 20 points in just one out of their last six games since coming out of the bye week (that coming in a losing effort to the Chargers), aren't likely to break that trend anytime soon, given the injuries at quarterback and receiver.

So play it safe and roll with the Bears in what should be a relatively low-scoring game.

Chicago 20, Giants 10


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