The Chicago Bears Vs. The Detroit Lions: Not As Close As We Thought

I don’t think that there was a person out there who felt that the game against the Lions wouldn’t be a battle despite the fact that Detroit has been one of the worst teams in the NFL for the past two seasons.  When these two teams get together, nine times out of ten it ends up being a battle and this game was no different to start.  Both teams were on fire during the first half as it seemed that both defenses had disappeared and allowed for six touchdowns between the two teams in that half. 

However, what happened to start the second half is indicative of how teams win games.  On the opening kickoff of the second half, Bear’s wide receiver Johnny Knox ran that same kickoff back 102 yards for a touchdown.  The Lions never recovered after that and scored just three more points in the game.  The Bears defense ratcheted up the pass pressure and recorded five and a half sacks and even knocked the Lions starting quarterback Matthew Stafford out of the game.  The second half was the best half the Bears defense has played all season.

Granted, the Lions are not the NFL’s best team but they do have a good group of wide receivers and their quarterback, despite being a rookie, isn’t too bad.  It’s their defense that has the most trouble right now and that was clearly evident in this game.  The Bears took full advantage of this as well as the problems that are evident on the Lion’s special teams unit and won this game in near grand fashion.

The Bears are a team that is just a few pieces away from being one of the best in the NFL.  Granted, they had a rough start to the season and their schedule hasn’t been as hard as others but this team has showed up when it has had to show up and looks better with each and every game.  There are some tough tests coming up (Atlanta and Cincinnati are up next) and if the Bears can come through those games with wins, there is a good chance that they could make the playoffs when it is all said and done.  As long as they stay healthy, particularly on defense, this team will continue to gel and grow and could quite possibly end up being a strong playoff team when it’s all said and done.

Stay tuned!