Bears vs. Lions: 7 Things We Learned from Chicago's 24-13 Loss

Earlier this week, I predicted a victory for the Bears over the favored and undefeated Lions. Well, nobody's perfect.

Yet as ugly as the Bears played at times, this was a winnable game for Chicago (2-3). Big plays killed the Bears and the offensive line once again couldn't give Jay Cutler the time he needs.

Look, this was a must-win for the Bears. But they didn't get it done, and their season is effectively over.

The Bears led this game at halftime, and as ugly as it was, penalties killed Chicago.

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of learning from losing, so I won't pull any punches here.

But I will give you what I saw in the game. Come join me as I provide the wretched details from this debacle in Detroit.

Bears Can Say Goodbye to Any Playoff Hopes

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the Bears now have about as much of a chance to make the playoffs as Calvin Johnson does of not catching another touchdown pass for the rest of the year.

Look, there are two undefeated teams in the NFC North.

The Packers and Lions are 5-0, and both have wins over the Bears, who are 0-2 in the division.

For the Bears to make the playoffs, both Green Bay and Detroit would need to go into a tailspin and the Bears would need to start winning three of every four games from here on out.

Those are extremely long odds, Bears fans.

And, truth be told, the Bears don't deserve to even be in that conversation.

The defense had some good moments on Monday night, but overall, they have played poorly this season.

The offensive line is a joke, and Cutler has no weapons on offense except Forte, who they won't pay.

In short, this is probably an 8-8 team this season, as most of the so-called "experts" predicted. Either they suddenly aged, or they were indeed lucky last season.

It pains me to admit it, but I was wrong about this team.

Offensive Line and Kellen Davis Need to Learn the Snap Count

The line wasn't able to handle the crowd noise, especially in the first half. Still, there are silent counts and other ways to combat this, yet the offensive line and Kellen Davis suffered from too many false starts.

There were mistakes from both teams, but the Bears simply don't have the kind of offense to overcome those false starts, which simply kill an offense.

They usually result in 3rd-and-long situations, and then the defense can simply pin their ears back and come after Cutler.

And it's not just the line—what about Kellen Davis? Yes, he caught a TD pass, but he cannot block anyone, and he had false starts early.

And yet they got rid of Greg Olsen because he couldn't block? Please!

Offensive Line Wouldn't Allow Cutler to Set His Feet

Imagine what Jay Cutler could do if he could actually go through his reads, set his feet and throw.

Unfortunately, the offensive line just won't allow that to happen.

For all of you Cutler bashers, you are being stupid. He is incredible—no one gets hit more than him, and he has no one to throw to.

Yet he refuses to throw his teammates under the bus. Oh, but they pick on him because of his mannerisms during games?

Give me a break. If I was Cutler, I would never be able to hold my composure like he does.

Meanwhile, I trust that Mike Tice is a good line coach, but if he can't see that Omiyale isn't a tackle, then I have to question his judgment.

Either that speaks volumes for the other options, or the injury to Gabe Carimi messed up their plans. Either way, playing Omiyale at tackle is not a good thing.

He played very poorly last week against Carolina, and he sucked again tonight.

The Bears have no one that can play either of the tackle positions. I bet a guy off of a rugby squad could do as well as J'Marcus Webb.

Refs Did a Poor Job

It seemed obvious that one of the early plans was for Detroit's defense to try to take out Jay Cutler.

Plus, the refs did a lousy job of blowing the whistle and stopping play on the early false starts, and it almost got Cutler killed.

In the second quarter, Kyle Vanden Bosch was allowed to push Cutler long after the play should have been blown dead.

Now, the penalties weren't the fault of the refs. The teams committed them.

But the refs called Brian Urlacher for leading with his helmet in the third quarter when clearly he led with his shoulder. And this led to a Detroit score.

Yet regardless of whether or not the refs called a good game, there were simply too many penalties on both sides, especially in the first half.

Where Was Marion Barber on Short Yardage?

I know he got hurt, but if he is healthy now, why aren't we seeing a healthy dose of Marion Barber?

I realize much of our offense is Matt Forte, but having a second option would allow Forte to get some rest plus give the opposing defense something else to think about.

When the Bears went for it on 4th-and-1 in the first half, they gave it to Forte. All preseason long, the talk was about how Barber would be that short-yardage, explosive back that Chester Taylor never was last year.

Instead, he watches on the sidelines.

In total, he had one rush for three yards.

I don't get it.

Chris Harris May Have Come Back Too Soon

Chris Harris had a terrific read early in the game, got in the backfield but missed a chance at a tackle for a loss.

Then, Harris was burned badly by Calvin Johnson on a 73-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Johnson in the second quarter.

Finally, where was he on that Jahvid Best 88-yard touchdown run in the third quarter?

But it may not be his fault. I feel he may have come back too soon because he felt pressure from a Bears coaching staff that knows this team sorely needs help at the safety position.

Major Wright may eventually be decent, but right now he's raw, especially in coverage.

Meanwhile, Craig Steltz knows the system and is usually in the right spot, but simply lacks the talent to ever be anything more than a backup.

And so far, Brandon Meriweather looks awful. I hope it's just that he's still learning the system, but it could be something more.

You see, Meriweather likes to freelance, and the Cover 2 does not allow that to happen. You have to be in position, and Meriweather hits hard but takes too many chances.

So Harris is the best we have, but he's either still hurt or rusty.

Bears Defense Gave Up Too Many Big Plays

Lions QB Matthew Stafford was never able to finish a game against the Bears, as Julius Peppers and Adewale Ogunleye knocked him out in 2010 and 2009, respectively.

Tonight, there was no such pressure on the Lions QB.

One sack and three QB hits, almost all in the first half. That's it.

The fact that Charles Tillman led the team in tackles says a lot. In case you didn't know, when your secondary has tackles, that means guys are getting through the linebackers.

The core of this defense is getting old, and they are on the field too long. Brian Urlacher had only three tackles.

Meanwhile, Julius Peppers got hurt but he did return. But once again, he was mostly invisible.

Maybe the defense was tired because the offense is so bad, but they really stink against the run this year.

Jahvid Best averaged 13.6 yards per carry, including an 88-yard run where he was untouched. As a team, the Lions averaged better than nine yards per carry, and that is simply unacceptable.

Calvin Johnson had a 73-yard TD reception.