The Chicago Bears are looking to close out their regular season by picking up their 12th win of the season in a matchup against the Detroit Lions, which would also clinch the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs.
It won’t be easy for Chicago as they look to bounce back from their 42-38 loss to the San Francisco 49ers last week, a game in which they gave up nearly 500 yards of total offense and allowed quarterback Brock Purdy to score five touchdowns.
When it comes to high level offense, there have not been many teams better over the past five years than the Lions, although the loss of Ben Johnson has been apparent this year. For the first time since 2021, Detroit will not be in the postseason, but the opportunity for them to play spoiler is a significant one, as they could put Chicago in a matchup with a NFC West team rather than the Green Bay Packers.
With nothing to lose in the regular season finale, the Lions could come out firing against the Bears. Here are the top three causes for concern in Chicago’s regular season finale:
Detroit playing spoiler
Back in Week 2, the Lions played their second game in four years without Ben Johnson as their offensive coordinator and seemed to take plenty of joy in beating down Johnson in just his second game as a head coach for the Bears. Even though they’ve been eliminated from playoff contention, Detroit defeating Chicago could lead them to having to play one of the NFC West’s playoff teams between the Rams or 49ers. While players and coaches may not have significant care about who they play in the first round, it goes without saying that the city of Chicago and Bears fanbase wants a third matchup against Green Bay, and Detroit could ruin those plans.
Rushing attack
Last week it was San Francisco, led by Christian McCaffrey’s 140 rushing yards and 200 total on the ground for the team. But overall this season, Chicago has struggled mightily against the run. Giving up over 135 yards per game, the Bears need to hold strong against a Lions backfield that features a duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and veteran David Montgomery. In Week 2, Detroit rushed for 177 yards against Chicago, with both of their top backs averaging over 5.0 yards per carry against the Bears defense.
Struggling defense
There’s no good feeling coming off a loss in which the Bears gave up 496 yards of offense and 42 total points to the 49ers, but it was a reality check for the defense. Chicago has been able to cover up their weaknesses with their league-leading 22 interceptions and 34 total takeaways. With one game left in the regular season, the Bears rank 22nd in scoring defense, allowing 24.8 points per game to opponents and 28th in total defense, allowing over 357 yards per game. Most playoff games won’t be high-level shootouts as they were involved with in Week 17, but the Lions could bring out all the stops in the regular season finale, potentially making it rough for the Bears defense on Sunday.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears vs. Lions: Causes for concern for Chicago in Week 18
