Detroit (12-2) at Chicago (4-10)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, FOX
BetMGM NFL odds: Lions by 7½.
Against the spread: Lions 9-5; Bears 6-6-2.
Series record: Bears lead 105-79-5.
Last meeting: Lions beat Bears 23-20 in Detroit on Nov. 28.
Last week: Lions lost to Buffalo 48-42; Bears lost at Minnesota 30-12.
Lions offense: overall (2), rush (6), pass (2), scoring (1).
Lions defense: overall (14), rush (6), pass (26), scoring (7).
Bears offense: overall (32), rush (21), pass (31), scoring (25).
Bears defense: overall (24), rush (26), pass (19), scoring (11).
Turnover differential: Lions plus-7; Bears plus-10.
DE Za’Darius Smith. Detroit's banged-up defense needs someone to step up and Smith is potentially a player who could help. The 32-year-old Smith has three sacks in five games since the Lions acquired him from Cleveland at the trade deadline. Smith did not sack Josh Allen and wasn't credited with a hit against him after having seven QB hits in the previous four games and 2 1/2 sacks in the previous two games. The Lions have lost eight players on the defensive line to injuries and desperately need Smith to shine and add this career total of 68 sacks.
QB Caleb Williams. The No. 1 overall draft pick looked like a beaten man both physically and mentally in the loss to Minnesota. He's been sacked a league-leading and franchise-record 58 times after being taken down twice against Minnesota, and though the offensive line is a huge problem, it's not all on the blocking. Williams has missed his share of open receivers. He had just 191 yards on Monday after throwing for 134 the previous week at San Francisco. He appeared to be progressing in the first three games with Thomas Brown calling plays following former offensive coordinator Shane Waldron's firing.
RB Jahmyr Gibbs against Chicago's defensive line. Though the Lions lost RB David Montgomery to a season-ending knee injury in the loss to Buffalo, the Bears still figure to have their hands full stopping the run. Entering Week 16, Gibbs is sixth in the NFL in rushing with 1,047 yards and is three shy of the league lead with 11 touchdown runs.
The Lions had a league-high 18 players on injured reserve before former Bears RB Montgomery, DT Alim McNeill, CB Carlton Davis and special teams ace Khalil Dorsey suffered serious injuries against Buffalo. ... Bears S Jaquan Brisker (concussion) has missed the past nine games. ... RB Roschon Johnson (concussion) was a full participant Wednesday, when the Bears held a walkthrough rather than practice, after missing back-to-back games. ... LT Braxton Jones — who sat out last week — and backup G Ryan Bates were also in the concussion protocol.
Detroit has won four of the past five meetings, including a Thanksgiving win that led to Chicago firing a coach in season for the first time when it let Matt Eberflus go the next day and replaced him on an interim basis with Brown. The Bears let the clock run down rather than call a timeout following a sack, resulting in incomplete pass from the Lions 41 as time expired when they could have run more than one play. It's part of a series of poor late-game decisions this season.
Detroit's franchise-record, 11-game winning streak ended last week with its first loss in three months. ... The Lions are a victory away from setting their single-season record, breaking a tie with last year's 11-win team and the 1991 squad. ... Detroit's loss and wins by Minnesota and Philadelphia dropped the Lions into a first-place tie in the NFC North and in the race for top seeding in the conference. ... The Lions have not lost two straight games in more than two years. ... Detroit closes the regular season with a trip to San Francisco followed by a home game against Minnesota. ... The Lions have scored at least 40 points five times, tying a franchise record with the 1952 team. ... QB Jared Goff became the first NFL player to lose after throwing for 400-plus yards and five TDs with no INTs last week. ... The Bears have lost eight straight and are 0-2 under Brown. ... Chicago's most recent win was against Jacksonville in London on Oct. 13. ... The Bears dropped their final 10 games two years ago as part of a franchise-record 14-game skid that stretched into last season. ... Chicago has been outscored a combined 73-20 in the first quarter this season, including 27-0 over the past three games. Opponents have a 53-0 edge in the first half during that span. ... The Bears' franchise record for sacks allowed is 66 in 2004. ... Williams has gone eight straight games and an NFL rookie-record 286 passes without an interception — the longest streak by any Bears quarterback. ... K Cairo Santos has made seven field goals of 50 yards or more, tying his own franchise record set last season.
Though Goff hasn’t exactly lit up the Bears in his career, the Lions might try to lean a little more on the pass with Montgomery out, after running for 194 yards in the most recent meeting. Goff threw for season-best 494 yards and matching a career high and team record with five TD passes against Buffalo. The three-time Pro Bowler has attempted 100 passes over the past two games.
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