Bears vs. Commanders winners picks: Week 5 Thursday night odds, spread

Week 5 of the 2023 NFL season is here, bringing another edition of Thursday Night Football. This week’s opening game features the 0-4 Chicago Bears against the 2-2 Washington Commanders. This game is not exactly a showcase game for the league, but one that could feature a team finding its rhythm and starting a turnaround for the season.

Last week, the Bears lost to the Denver Broncos, dropping the game 31-28. Chicago quarterback Justin Fields, the 2021 11th overall pick, appeared much more in control and comfortable than he previously had shown. He finished the game 28-for-35 for 335 yards, his first time reaching the 300-yard mark, with four touchdowns, an interception, and a 132.7 passer rating. His only incomplete pass through his first 24 throws was a Hail Mary pass at the end of the first half. Is this a sign that Fields is breaking through and ready to start looking like a first-round draft pick as he adapts to the NFL game in his third season?

The Commanders lost 34-31 to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 4, but they did manage to force the game into overtime and give the reigning NFC champions trouble late in the contest. Quarterback Sam Howell finished the game 29-for-41 for 290 yards with a touchdown and a 98. passer rating. He also ran for 40 of the Commanders’ 107 rushing yards on the day.

The line for the game has been moving a little over the last day, expanding to a full seven-point spread before money started coming in on the Bears and moving it back down. As of Thursday morning, the Commanders are favored by six points, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. The point total for the game is set at 44.5, with the Commanders -265 on the moneyline while the Packers are +215.

As we do here on The Phinsider each week, our contributors have made their predictions for the game. We primarily focus on the straight-up winners for our season-long pool here on the site, but we can also make spread and over/under picks. You can check those out in the tabs on the widget below from Tallysight.

Before we do get to the picks for tonight’s game, here are our results from last week and the overall standings for the season.

Week 4:

Sumeet Jena 13-3
Jake Mendel 13-3
Marek Brave 12-4
James McKinney 12-4
George Forer 11-5
Josh Houtz 11-5*
Kevin Nogle 11-5
Nick Sabatnio 11-5

2023 Season Standings:

James McKinney 42-22
Jake Mendel 42-22
Marek Brave 41-23
Kevin Nogle 41-23
Josh Houtz 40-24
Sumeet Jena 40-24
George Forder 39-25
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Nick Sabatino 29-19**

*Houtz did not have a pick in the system for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints game. An additional loss was added to the standings for this game.

**Nick Sabatino missed making his Week 3 picks. We will continue to track his picks throughout the rest of the season, but we will not include him in the overall standings.

Here are our Week 5 Thursday night picks: