Lions' Defense Comes Up Huge in 34-30 Victory against Bears
Darrell Bevell won't soon forget his first game at the helm of the Detroit Lions.
Detroit's defense came up huge in its 34-30 victory on the road against Chicago.
Despite the head coaching change made by the Lions 10 days ago, the remnants of Matt Patricia's defense continued to rear their ugly head until late in the game.
On Sunday, Mitchell Trubisky and the Chicago Bears' offense were able to have their way with Detroit's defense. Recall, coming into the game, the Bears featured the 31st-ranked offense in the NFL.
Detroit's defense, led by coordinator Cory Undlin, still demonstrated struggles stopping the run.
After Jamal Agnew failed to gain a first down on fourth down during an early offensive series, Chicago took over on downs, and marched down the field for a six-play, 71-yard scoring drive, capped off by a David Montgomery 13-yard touchdown scamper.
Detroit's offense was able to answer with a scoring drive of its own, as Matthew Stafford completed two third-down passes, first to Marvin Jones Jr. on third-and-10 and another to T.J. Hockenson on third-and-4.
On the drive, veteran Adrian Peterson found the end zone for a rushing touchdown, but Matt Prater missed the extra point.
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© Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports
The Lions' defense was unable to force Chicago's first punt of the afternoon until the 4:32 mark in the second quarter.
Interim Detroit head coach Darrell Bevell hinted all week that the offense was going to take its shots deep, and Detroit's first touchdown was the best reception of Quintez Cephus’ rookie season.
Stafford and him connected on a 49-yard touchdown pass, cutting Chicago's lead to 16-13.
The touchdown was the first of the young wideout's career.
Any momentum gained by Detroit was quickly negated, as Chicago extended its lead to 23-13 on Montgomery's second touchdown of the first half.
For the half, the Bears had 17 first downs and 253 net yards of offense, including 106 rushing yards.
Tight end Jesse James, who hasn't been utilized in Detroit's offense nearly as much as expected, was the recipient of a nine-yard touchdown pass that cut Chicago's lead to 23-20 with four minutes remaining in the third quarter.
When the defense was called upon to make the big stop, it simply could not answer the bell, as Chicago extended its lead to 30-20 early in the fourth quarter.
Almost on cue, Stafford turned the ball over on Detroit's next drive, when he inexcusably threw an interception on a side-arm throw attempt to James.
Despite the turnover, Stafford was productive on the afternoon, throwing for more than 400 yards and three touchdowns.
He connected with Jones on a 25-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter, which made it a three-point game, 30-27.
Then, on the following offensive possession for the Bears, Detroit defensive end Romeo Okwara came up with a strip-sack of Trubisky that was recovered by rookie defensive lineman John Penisini.
The Lions took advantage of the Chicago miscue, and scored on their subsequent drive via an Adrian Peterson goal-line rush.
It put Detroit in the lead for good at 34-30.
With the win, Detroit improves to 5-7 on the season, and will return home to face the Green Bay Packers at Ford Field next Sunday.
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