After a rough showing in Week 1 at the hands of the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions are back at home this week, where they will be taking on the Chicago Bears in what will be another pivotal early-season NFC North matchup. Both teams head into Week 2 sitting at 0-1, with this game being the first return to Ford Field for Bears’ coach Ben Johnson.
Joining me in our second edition of the “Before the Roar” preview podcast are my good friends Meko Scott and Brandon Knapp. We discuss some of what went wrong for the Lions in Green Bay, as well as what caused Chicago’s fourth-quarter collapse at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings. From there, we delve into the first injury reports of the week and identify who we should keep an eye on as we approach Sunday.
When the Lions’ defense is on the field, we discussed what needs to happen to keep Chicago’s offense in check, including keeping quarterback Caleb Williams in the pocket. It was only one week, but Williams’ issues of staying on schedule showed up against Minnesota. Knowing this, I would expect Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard to place an emphasis on crushing the pocket around Williams and limiting his ability to use his athleticism to create out of structure. That, as well as limiting a Bears’ rushing attack that had its own issues in Week 1 should be top priorities.
On the offensive side of the ball, we all agree this could potentially be a big day for Detroit’s running backs, David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs. Look for the Lions to hand the ball off early and often in order to open up the intermediate passing game. You can watch the first segment of the show on the Pride of Detroit YouTube Channel, as well as listen to the entire show wherever you get your podcasts.
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