Bears vs. Lions: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2014 Thanksgiving Day Football

The Detroit Lions have embraced a new defensive identity in 2014, but that didn't mean the timeless Thanksgiving tradition of serving up several helpings of an unstoppable Calvin Johnson had to come to an end.

Megatron caught 11 passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns on Thursday, leading the Lions to a 34-17 whipping of the Chicago Bears.

Moving to 8-4, the Lions gained 474 yards to Chicago's 269. Matthew Stafford threw for 390 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions, while Joique Bell added 91 yards and two scores on the ground.

It was a record-setting afternoon for Johnson, who had been slowed—at least by his mountainous standards—by an ankle injury for much of the season. On a single drive in the first half, he surpassed the 10,000-yard receiving mark and reeled in his eighth career touchdown on Turkey Day.

ESPN Stats & Info and NFL director of NFC football communications Randall Liu noted the new records:

NFL provided video of Johnson's first touchdown reception today while the Lions announced Johnson won the All-Iron award:

Tony Gonzalez, a man who knows a thing or two about setting records himself, put it simply:

"To try to slow him down is going to be a group effort. Everyone has to play well and execution has to be at a high level. We've got to do a great job with the game plan. Guys have to play hard," said Bears defensive coordinator Mel Tucker prior to the game addressing how Chicago planned to contain Johnson, courtesy of Larry Mayer of ChicagoBears.com.

The Bears, in desperate need of a victory to stay alive in the postseason hunt, started the game with a statement. Jay Cutler orchestrated a six-play, 55-yard drive on the team's first possession, finding Alshon Jeffery for a 10-yard touchdown.

After Jared Allen recovered a Stafford fumble deep in Detroit territory, Cutler again connected with Jeffery to make it 14-3.

NFL Philosophy on Twitter pointed out the importance of the third-year wide receiver, who finished with 71 yards on nine catches:

The second quarter belonged to Johnson, though. He caught five passes for 57 yards and a pair of touchdowns, as the Lions scored on all three of their drives in the period to make it 24-14 at half.

Ensuring a victory, Bell tacked on a one-yard touchdown run—his second of the game—in the fourth quarter. Absent from the end zone since the middle of October, he found a way to make up for lost time, via CBS' NFL Twitter feed:

Bell's touchdown pushed the lead to 31-17, and for the Bears, there was no escaping that deficit against a defense that allowed just 182 yards—many of which were in garbage time—after the first quarter.

As the Chicago Tribune's Rich Campbell observed, the difference was in the trenches, where Detroit held an overwhelming advantage:

Cutler threw two interceptions, including one on the final play of the game to mark an all-too-appropriate ending, as Bleacher Report's Dave Lozo noted:

"

Jay Cutler hustling to the line to run one more stat-padding play only to have it end in an interception is as Jay Cutler as it gets.

— Dave Lozo (@DaveLozo) November 27, 2014"

With the win, the Lions remain right in the thick of the playoff picture. With the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Minnesota Vikings and Bears on tap for the next three weeks, there's a good chance they'll be 11-4 heading into a Week 17 showdown against the Green Bay Packers, who currently lead the NFC North by a half-game.

As for the 5-7 Bears, things may get worse before they get better, as they host the Dallas Cowboys a week from Thursday. Injuries certainly haven't helped, but head coach Marc Trestman may be fighting for his job down the stretch.

It's clearly going to be a much happier Thanksgiving for those east of Lake Michigan.