The San Francisco 49ers haven’t lost since Brock Purdy returned from a toe injury that sidelined him for six games, winning all five of their contests with the 26-year-old back under center. The winning streak has given them a chance to secure the NFC West title for the third time in four years.
In order to accomplish that feat, San Francisco (11-4) first must record its sixth consecutive victory when it hosts the NFC North champions Chicago Bears (11-4) at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Cal. at 8:20 p.m. ET on Sunday Night Football. The 49ers, who already have clinched a playoff berth, trail the Seahawks (12-3) by one game but opened the season with a 17-13 road triumph over Seattle and concludes the campaign against the Mike Macdonald’s squad at home next week.
Each of San Francisco’s last seven wins have been by double digits. including a 48-27 victory versus the Indianapolis Colts in Week 16. The 49ers are ninth in the NFL in scoring with an average of 26.1 points but have produced at least 34 in four of their past six triumphs.
Chicago clinched its fifth NFC North title and first since 2018 with the Green Bay Packers’ 41-24 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday. The Bears, who posted a thrilling 22-16 overtime victory over the Packers last week, and the 49ers both still have a chance to overtake the Seahawks for the No. 1 seed in the conference.
Six games are on Sunday’s NBA schedule, including a matchup between the Detroit Pistons (24-7) and Los Angeles Clippers (9-21) at 9 p.m. ET at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Cal. The Pistons fell to 2-1 on their five-game road trip with Friday’s 131-129 setback against the Utah Jazz while the Clippers are coming off their third straight victory, a 119-103 triumph over the Portland Trail Blazers.
The NHL has five games on its slate, one of which is an Atlantic Division battle between the last-place Toronto Maple Leafs (17-15-5) and first-place Detroit Red Wings (22-14-3) at 7 p.m. ET at Little Caesars Arena. It is the third meeting of the season between the Original Six rivals and first since the Red Wings swept a home-and-home series in October.
There also are numerous college basketball games taking place on Sunday, including a West Coast Conference clash between San Francisco (8-5) and Seattle (11-2) at 8 p.m. ET at the Redhawk Center. The Dons have been idle since last Sunday, when they trounced Morgan State by 30 points, while the Redhawks edged UTSA 71-68 the following day for their sixth consecutive victory.
The 49ers are 3.5-point favorites against the Bears in the latest consensus NFL odds. The Pistons are 3-point favorites against the Clippers, the Red Wings are -127 favorites on the money line against the Maple Leafs and Seattle is an 2.5-point favorite against San Francisco.
Below is a snapshot of what to watch and bet for Sunday, Dec. 28. All times Eastern
NFL best bets, where to watch
Bears at 49ers
Time: 8:20 p.m. | Location: Santa Clara, Cal. | TV: NBC | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine picks — Model: Bears +3.5 (-116) | Expert: Colston Loveland Over 3.5 receptions (-123, PropBetGuy)
The 49ers have been winning comfortably of late and rolled past the Bears 38-13 last season without Christian McCaffrey, who is tied for third in the NFL this year with 16 total touchdowns. But Chicago has lost just one game since Week 8, and that was a 28-21 setback at Green Bay in which the Packers snapped a tie with 3:32 remaining in the fourth quarter. Even though they’ve already won the NFC North, the Bears won’t be coasting as they still have a shot at the top seed in the conference. They are 8-2 against the spread in their last 10 games and the SportsLine Projection Model has them covering against San Francisco in 52% of simulations. SportsLine NFL props expert PropBetGuy (+1267 on his last 73 NFL player prop picks) thinks Chicago’s Colston Loveland will be involved in the team’s aerial attack against a 49ers defense that has struggled to contain opposing tight ends lately.
More NFL best bets
NBA best bets, where to watch
Pistons at Clippers
Time: 9 p.m. | Location: Inglewood, Cal. | TV: NBA League Pass | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine picks — Model: Over 224.5 (-109) | Expert: Clippers +3.5 (-111, Bruce Marshall)
The Pistons are tied for eighth in the NBA with an average of 119.5 points per game. And after only 212 combined points were scored in the opener of their road trip, at least 260 were produced in their last two contests. Detroit’s Cade Cunningham (26.5) and Los Angeles’ James Harden (26.3) both are averaging more than 26 points, and the SportsLine Projection Model sees them coming close to those numbers and making this game a high-scoring one as its simulations say the Over hits 56% of the time. The Clippers have won each contest during their three-game streak by double digits, and SportsLine expert Bruce Marshall (48-41-1 on his last 90 NBA picks) believes they’ll at least cover the spread as the Pistons are beginning to appear tired on their road trip.
NHL best bets, where to watch
Maple Leafs at Red Wings
Time: 7 p.m. | Location: Detroit | TV: ESPN+ | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine picks — Model: Maple Leafs +1.5 (-220) | Expert: Red Wings -139 (Matt Severance)
The Maple Leafs have followed a three-game losing streak during which they scored a total of four goals by tallying a combined 13 times in back-to-back victories. Detroit posted a pair of overtime victories before suffering a 5-2 road loss against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. Toronto also was in action last night and could be without leading scorer William Nylander, who tallied in the team’s 7-5 triumph over the Ottawa Senators but exited with an apparent knee injury. But the Maple Leafs will have plenty of motivation for this matchup after dropping 6-3 and 3-2 decisions to the Red Wings in the first week of the season. The SportsLine Projection Model likes the Leafs to keep this meeting close, at worst, as they cover the spread in 69% of its simulations. SportsLine expert Matt Severance (6-2, +385 on his last eight NHL money-line picks) feels Detroit will come away with the win, however, as the possible absence of Nylander and Toronto’s lack of success on the road (5-10-0) are too much to overlook.
CBB best bets, where to watch
San Francisco at Seattle
Time: 9 p.m. | Location: Seattle | TV: ESPN+ | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine picks — Model: Seattle -145 | Expert: Seattle -2.5 (-108, Bruce Marshall)
Seattle hasn’t lost since Nov. 29, when it was edged 74-71 by UC Santa Barbara in the championship game of the Resorts World Classic. The Redhawks’ only other defeat this season was a two-point setback against Cal Poly three weeks earlier. Both of the Dons’ last two contests were double-digit victories, but the SportsLine Projection Model sees the Redhawks extending their winning streak to seven games as its simulations have them winning 64% of the time. SportsLine expert Bruce Marshall (7-3, +370 on his last 10 college basketball picks) agrees and likes Seattle to cover the spread with a balanced offense that has had five different players lead the team in scoring during its current six-game run.
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