After a disappointing opening week against the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions came home on Sunday for their home opener against the Chicago Bears. Former offensive coordinator turned Bears’ head coach Ben Johnson was met with a loud amount of boos as he returned to Ford Field. It wasn’t just the crowd that made Johnson hear it, as the Lions players showed up and showed out on Sunday afternoon.
The Lions offense started the game with the ball and scored with ease, moving down the field with no trouble. The Bears responded with a similar drive that tied it at seven. The Lions would regain the lead 14-7 and never looked back, keeping the Bears at a distance as they would go up 28-14 at halftime. The second half was much worse for the Bears as they only scored one more time, while the Lions scored 24 points to finish the game, winning this one decisively, 52-21.
There is plenty to discuss after the Lions’ impressive win on Sunday afternoon. Here are my takeaways from the victory against the Bears.
Offensive line rebounds in a big way
Last week, the Lions’ offensive line looked like it was still a work in progress with two new starters taking over. There were miscommunication issues, no time for quarterback Jared Goff to throw, and no lanes for either running back. This week, Goff had more time to throw the ball and looked comfortable in the pocket for the most part, rebounding with three passing touchdowns. With Goff having time to throw, it gave the wide receivers more chances to make a play and separate from their defender and find the open space.
The play action worked with the success of the running game, opening the offense up to look like it has in the past. No player seemed to struggle like last week, and things looked smooth communication-wise. This was a great bounce-back performance that no unit needed more than the offensive line. When this unit isn’t up to their standards, the whole offense is affected by it, but when they are on it, they are arguably the best offense in the NFL.
Sonic and Knuckles back to business
Another unit that needed a kick in the pants were the running backs, and while part of their struggles were due to the offensive line last week, part of it was on them for not executing well. Against the Bears, both running backs, Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, improved and helped move the ball on the ground. Gibbs had 12 carries for 94 yards and a touchdown, while Montgomery had 11 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown as well. After a slow start in the first half, Gibbs was the one to break out some big runs in the second half.
Both players faced better chances to make a play, but it took some time for those plays to open up. Both players weren’t much of a factor on the receiving side things, combining for just 14 yards on four receptions, but that didn’t matter much today.
Defensive line improved, but still not where it should be
With an offensive line that struggled against the Minnesota Vikings, the Lions had a chance to attack the Bears group with a better unit. The Lions held the Packers to 3.1 yards per carry, but the Bears finished with five yards per carry. Running back D’Andre Swift did well with 63 yards on 12 carries, scoring once as the Bears had to abandon him being down by a lot in the second half. So the run defense took a step back this week, which was disappointing to see after they slowed down Packers running back Josh Jacobs last week.
The pass rush took a while to get going, but it woke up in the second half. EDGE Aidan Hutchinson had a better showing this week, and while his only tackle was the sack, he finished with 5 pressures per PFF. EDGE Al-Quadin Muhammad and Marcus Davenport got a sack as well, as they closed the pocket around Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. In the first half, Williams had lots of time to throw the ball and it seemed like the defensive line would be stuck in the mud again. Hopefully as the season progresses the defensive line doesn’t need a half to generate pressure and have an impact on the game.
This game was a step in the right direction for the unit, but things need to be better overall if they are going to win this division.
Goff to TeSlaa is a new lovely connection
Goff is starting to develop something with rookie wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa. Last week, TeSlaa had a spectacular touchdown catch in garbage time, but this week he came up clutch for the Lions. TeSlaa snagged a one-handed sideline grab with 16 seconds left in the half, to set up the Lions inside the five. On the next play, Goff found wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown for the touchdown to go up 28-14 at the break.
The Lions having TeSlaa break out and turn into another weapon for this offense should scare opposing defenses. The team can already move the ball with other playmakers, so giving them depth and more problems for defenses isn’t fun for the other 31 teams in the league.
Turnovers come in clutch
The Lions had a pick-six wiped away against Green Bay, but against Chicago, they got not just one, but two turnovers. The first was a huge hit by safety Brian Branch on Swift. Once I saw a mouthpiece fly out, I expected the ball to pop next and, sure enough, the ball came out and was recovered by linebacker Jack Campbell.
Safety Kerby Joseph saw Branch get a turnover and wanted to join in on the fun. He got an assist by Hutchinson, who almost got a sack on Williams, but he caused enough pressure to have Williams throw the ball away. The ball wasn’t thrown far enough out of bounds though, as Joseph dove for the impressive interception.
The Lions also produced two turnovers on downs as they had the Bears reeling for most of the game. It was a good defensive showing by the Lions, and those turnovers were a big part of it.
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