The Tim Tebow bandwagon continues to grow in each week in the NFL, with some saying Tebow is now an NFL MVP candidate after he has stunning led the Denver Broncos from a 1-4 start to first place in the AFC West. Denver returns home Sunday against a sliding Bears team missing by far its two best offensive players. The Broncos opened as 3.5-point favorites on Bodog’s NFL football betting odds.
 
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Chicago (7-5) was one of the hottest teams in the NFL before QB Jay Cutler went down with a broken thumb in Week 11’s win over San Diego. The Bears’ offense has gone in the tank without Cutler, as backup Caleb Hanie has thrown three picks each in losses to Oakland and Kansas City the past two weeks. In Sunday’s 10-3 loss to the Chiefs, he 11 of 24 passes for 133 yards. He was sacked seven times by a team that came into the game with 13 sacks, dead last in the NFL. The Bears were 0-for-11 on third-down conversions.
 
The news gets worse for Chicago as running back Matt Forte, who leads the league in yards from scrimmage, went down with what is being called a Grade 2 MCL strain and is out anywhere from 2-6 weeks. Chicago will attempt to go with a mix of Marion Barber (44 yards on 14 carries vs. K.C.) and Kahlil Bell (34 yards, four carries) to replace the gaping hole that Forte leaves in both the running and passing game.
 
Things could be better in Denver (7-5), which has won five straight behind Tebow. The former Heisman winner finally won a game with his arm, going 10-for-15 for a season-best 202 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday’s 35-32 win at Minnesota, finishing with a career-high rating of 149.3. Tebow only carried the ball four times. Over his first 10 NFL starts, Tebow has led the Broncos to game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime five times. His completion percentage has improved in each of the past four games.
 
In his seven starts this season, Tebow has beaten only two teams – the Jets and Raiders – currently with a winning record. Denver and the Bears haven’t met since 2007, back when Cutler was still a Bronco.
 
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