Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions: Full Report Card Grades for Chicago
The Chicago Bears jumped out to a 14-3 lead in the first quarter on Thanksgiving Day before the Detroit Lions stormed back and took a 24-14 lead at halftime. Chicago stumbled on both sides of the football in the second half, and Detroit came away with a 34-17 victory.
After keeping the Lions offense at bay in the first quarter, Chicago's defense allowed quarterback Matthew Stafford to go off in the second quarter, via Dan Durkin of 670TheScore.com:
"Stafford was surgical in the second quarter, going 14-for-16 for 196 yards and two touchdowns. #Bears-#Lions
— dan durkin (@djdurkin) November 27, 2014"
Chicago was unable to get into any sort of rhythm offensively after the first quarter and finished with just 269 yards of total offense.
"We didn’t do enough. It starts with me," head coach Marc Trestman said after the game, via Kevin Fishbain of ChicagoFootball.com. "I’m looking inside and accepting accountability for this loss, obviously. We just couldn’t get it done today and didn’t have enough ammunition to stop them or continue drives."
The loss on Thursday dropped the Bears to 5-7 on the year. Even though the playoffs are likely out of reach, they are not giving up on the season.
“I think with the guys we have and character and integrity of the guys, I don’t think anybody’s going to quit,” quarterback Jay Cutler said, via Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune. “I don’t think the coaches would let us. They’re going to stay on us. I think the leaders of the team will make sure that we finish this the right way.”
The Bears will be back at home this coming Thursday when they take on the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football.
Here are our grades for each Bears unit following the Week 13 loss to the Detroit Lions.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Chicago's game plan in the first half was all about getting the football out of quarterback Jay Cutler's hands quickly.
Cutler completed seven of his eight pass attempts in the first quarter for 67 yards and two touchdowns. He finished the first half with 107 yards passing on 14 completions.
Cutler and the offense did not try to push the football down the field in the half and often settled for bubble screens to the outside or short passes across the middle of the field.
After falling behind by a score of 24-14 at halftime, Chicago's offense was forced to throw the ball more in the second half. Cutler finished the game with 31 completions on 49 attempts for 280 yards with two touchdowns, two interceptions and a quarterback rating of 75.2.
It appeared that head coach Marc Trestman was afraid to let Cutler throw the football down the field, which resulted in him throwing a plethora of screen passes, via Michael C. Wright of ESPNChicago.com:
"Cutler has a career-high 12 pass attempts on screen plays today (10-for-12, 61 yards, TD)
— Michael C. Wright (@mikecwright) November 27, 2014"
Cutler struggled to combat Detroit's pressure up the middle in the second half and threw both of his interceptions in the fourth quarter.
While he is not entirely to blame for the team's downfall on Thursday, Cutler's struggles were a big reason why Chicago was unable to come away with a victory against Detroit.
Grade: D
Running Back
2 of 10
For weeks Matt Forte has been Chicago's most consistent producer on offense, but he was a non-factor against the Detroit Lions in Week 13.
He ran the ball just five times for six yards on the afternoon. His longest run of the game was for only three yards. Detroit came into the game boasting one of the league's best run defenses, but Chicago opted to not even try to establish something in the running game.
Forte did finish the game with six catches for 52 yards.
Backup Ka'Deem Carey ran the football twice for eight yards and hauled in one catch for seven yards.
Since the coaching staff opted to only run the football seven times on the day, Forte and Carey cannot accept all of the blame for their poor performance.
Grade: D+
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Despite having two wide receivers with the ability to go up and catch the football, Chicago chose to throw a bevy of bubble screens to wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall on Thursday afternoon.
Jeffery finished the game with nine catches for 71 yards and two touchdowns on 13 targets. Out of all of Chicago's wide receivers, Jeffery appeared to be the only one fighting for extra yards.
Brandon Marshall hauled in six catches for 42 yards on 11 targets, but he dropped a couple of passes and looked disinterested at times on the field.
While Marshall's effort was questionable at times, tight end Martellus Bennett fought for extra yards until the end on Thursday afternoon, via Sam Charles of the Chicago Sun-Times:
"I can't remember the last time Martellus Bennett was brought down by the first defender who makes contact with him. The guy is a truck.
— Sam Charles (@samjcharles) November 27, 2014"
Bennett finished the game with eight catches for 109 yards on 12 targets.
In the end, Chicago's game plan left little to be desired for its wide receivers and tight ends. Other than a couple of shots down the field throughout the course of the game, the Bears seemed content with getting the football in their receivers' hands and letting them do the work.
Because of Jeffery and Bennett's strong efforts, Chicago's wide receivers and tight ends graded out as the team's best unit on offense.
Grade: C
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
Chicago's offensive line was dealt a big blow earlier in the week when the team placed backup center Brian de la Puente on injured reserve.
"#Bears have placed OL Brian de la Puente on injured reserve with ankle injury and promoted DT Brandon Dunn from practice squad.
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 26, 2014"
De la Puente started a handful of games at center earlier in the season when Roberto Garza was out with an injury, and he started the previous two games at left guard. With De la Puente on the shelf, the Bears moved Michael Ola back to left guard.
Both Ola and right guard Kyle Long held their own against Detroit's stout interior defensive line, but Jermon Bushrod, Roberto Garza and Jordan Mills all struggled to keep pressure off quarterback Jay Cutler.
Since injuring his ankle and knee, Bushrod has struggled, as evident in this Twitter exchange between TheGameChicago.com's Adam Hoge and 670 The Score radio host Laurence Holmes:
"Third time in four games. RT @LaurenceWHolmes: Bushrod is struggling today. #Bears
— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) November 27, 2014"
Garza struggled against Detroit's Ndamukong Suh when forced to play him one-on-one throughout the afternoon. Suh was unable to get a mark on the stat sheet, but he created constant pressure against Garza.
In the end, Chicago's offensive line allowed three sacks and eight quarterback hits and played one of its worst games of the season.
Grade: D
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Even without defensive tackle Jeremiah Ratliff in the lineup on Thursday afternoon, Chicago's defensive line started off the game very strong, via Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune:
"Bears lead 14-3 after first quarter. Bears DL has consistently been disruptive, even w/o Ratliff. Offense moved the ball with quick throws.
— Rich Campbell (@Rich_Campbell) November 27, 2014"
With Ratliff sidelined, rookie defensive tackle Will Sutton got the start at the 3-technique position. He finished the game with two tackles and one tipped pass.
Defensive end Jared Allen was the star of the first quarter for Chicago's defensive line. He abused undrafted rookie left tackle Cornelius Lucas for much of the first quarter and beat him for a strip sack of Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford. In addition to forcing the fumble, Allen also recovered the football. He finished the game with four tackles, two sacks and three quarterback hits.
Despite the defensive line's strong start to the game, the unit collapsed in the second quarter. After applying consistent pressure on Stafford early and often, the defensive line was unable to rattle Stafford from the second quarter on.
Ego Ferguson finished the game with two tackles, while Stephen Paea finished with just one.
Life will not got much easier for Chicago's defensive line next week when the Bears take on the Dallas Cowboys and their terrific offensive line.
Grade: F
Linebacker
6 of 10
Veteran weak-side linebacker Lance Briggs was unable to play on Thursday afternoon due to a groin injury. He was replaced in the lineup by second-year man Jon Bostic.
Bostic finished the game with 11 tackles, including one tackle for loss. He did a nice job of filling his gaps in the running game in the first half, but he struggled a bit in the second.
After playing an average game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday, Shea McClellin once against looked lost at times on the field Thursday afternoon. The third-year linebacker out of Boise State registered just one tackle against the Lions.
Rookie Christian Jones played primarily in the nickel package and finished with six tackles and one quarterback hit. Veteran middle linebacker D.J. Williams finished with four tackles.
Chicago's linebackers did a nice job against the run in the first half but struggled to keep Lions running back Joique Bell in check in the second half.
Grade: D
Secondary
7 of 10
After injuring his knee against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday afternoon, Kyle Fuller toughed it out and suited up against the Lions on Thursday afternoon. While Fuller's toughness and desire to be on the field in Week 13 were admirable, he played one of his worst games of the season against the Lions.
Fuller spent much of his afternoon matched up against Calvin Johnson and allowed two touchdowns to the All-Pro wide receiver.
Despite the rookie's struggles against Johnson, Bleacher Report's Zach Kruse and 670 The Score radio host Laurence Holmes both think he'll be better in the long run:
"Kyle Fuller will have better days in this league.
— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) November 27, 2014"
"That was too easy & you knew it was one of 2 routes. Just tough for Fuller. He'll be better for it, but damn...
— Laurence Holmes (@LaurenceWHolmes) November 27, 2014"
Fuller finished the game with seven tackles and one pass defended.
Veteran Tim Jennings finished with two tackles before he left the game with a groin injury. Nickelback Demontre Hurst finished with four tackles.
Free safety Chris Conte left the game with an apparent concussion, but he was later ruled out with an eye injury, via TheGameChicago.com's Adam Hoge:
"#Bears say Chris Conte does not have a concussion, but he will not return because of an eye injury.
— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) November 27, 2014"
Rookie Brock Vereen replaced Conte and finished with seven tackles. Strong safety Ryan Mundy led the team with 12 total tackles.
In the end, Chicago's secondary was outplayed by a far more talented Detroit receiving corps. Johnson finished the game with 11 catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns, while Golden Tate hauled in eight catches for 89 yards.
Since the defensive line was unable to get any pressure in the second half, the secondary struggled to keep Detroit's receivers in check.
Grade: F
Special Teams
8 of 10
After struggling to get himself into much of a rhythm earlier this season, punter Pat O'Donnell appeared to find his groove against the Lions.
The rookie punted six times on Thursday afternoon for 288 yards and dropped three balls inside the 20-yard line. Chicago's punt coverage unit held Jeremy Ross to just 14 yards on two returns.
Ross did return three kickoffs for a total of 65 yards.
Kicker Robbie Gould finally kicked a ball through the uprights on Thursday afternoon, via Bob LeGere of the Daily Herald:
"Robbie Gould's first FG in 6 games gets #Bears within 24-17.
— Bob LeGere (@BobLeGere) November 27, 2014"
Return man Marc Mariani returned one kick for 24 yards and two punts for 25 yards. While his numbers do not jump off the page, his patience and decision-making in the last two games already make him the best returner the team has had this season.
Grade: B+
Coaching
9 of 10
Despite possessing some of the league's best weapons on offense, Chicago managed to put just 17 points on the scoreboard Thursday afternoon.
Trestman's offense threw the football 49 times and ran it just eight times for a total of 269 yards.
The head coach failed to once again make adjustments at halftime and continued to call the same bubble screens and short passes that were already proving to be ineffective near the end of the first half.
Even though Chicago's defense has struggled at times this year, the Chicago Tribune's Brad Biggs believes the offense is the bigger issue:
"I've said it since the first month of the season. The problems with #Bears offense far more troubling than defensive issues/shortcomings.
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) November 27, 2014"
With Trestman failing to build on the team's success on offense from a year ago, it may be time for Chicago to look in a different direction this offseason.
On defense, Mel Tucker's unit put forth a strong effort in the first quarter before Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson carved up Chicago's secondary. Tucker once again failed to make significant adjustments at halftime.
Grade: F
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Overall Grade |
| QB | D |
| RB | D+ |
| WR/TE | C |
| OL | D |
| DL | F |
| LB | D |
| Secondary | F |
| Special Teams | B+ |
| Coaching | F |
| Cumulative Grade | D- |
After looking completely out of the playoff race just a few weeks ago following back-to-back losses to the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers, the Chicago Bears headed into Thursday's game with an opportunity to become relevant in the NFC playoff picture. Unfortunately for Chicago, it lost to the Lions and dropped to 5-7 on the season.
In an odd scheduling quirk, the Bears will play another weekday contest in Week 14 when they take on the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football December 4.
The Bears are not mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, but it is highly unlikely that they will be playing football this January.
Record/statistical information provided via email from the Chicago Bears or ESPN.com.
Matt Eurich is an NFL/Chicago Bears Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.
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