The Chicago Bears gave up 474 yards to the Detroit Lions and never were close to the division leaders in a 34-17 loss Sunday at Soldier Field.
It was the third straight week the Bears (4-11) have given up at least 30 points and the third time in five weeks they have given up at least 450 yards.
Lions quarterback Jared Goff threw for 336 yards and three touchdowns — including an 82-yard TD pass to Jameson Williams in the first half — and running back Jahmyr Gibbs rushed for 109 yards and a score.
The loss was the Bears’ ninth straight, marking the second-longest losing streak in team history. They lost 14 games over the 2022-23 seasons — including 10 to end 2022. General manager Ryan Poles has overseen the teams that went on both record streaks.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams topped 300 passing yards for the fourth time this season. He completed 26 of 40 passes for 334 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Keenan Allen had nine catches for 141 yards.
But the Bears, who lost two fumbles in the first half and played much of the game without starting left tackle Braxton Jones (ankle) and left guard Teven Jenkins (calf), couldn’t keep pace with the league’s top scoring offense.
After leading 27-14 at halftime, the Lions (13-2) scored on the opening drive of the third quarter when Goff hit Sam LaPorta for a 21-yard touchdown pass and a 34-14 lead.
Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the drive after Craig Reynolds’ 5-yard catch. Johnson shoved Reynolds and later batted the ball down as Reynolds tossed it to an official.
The Bears settled for Cairo Santos’ 30-yard field goal on their next drive to cut the score to 34-17.
The Lions got to the Bears 13-yard line on the ensuing drive and went for it on fourth-and-3. Tremaine Edmunds broke up a pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown, and the Bears took over.
The Bears couldn’t score on the next drive, however, despite getting to the Lions 22. A DJ Moore catch lost a yard, left guard Jake Curhan was flagged for a false start and Williams lost 9 yards on a sack on third down.
The Bears again failed to score after getting to the Lions 11 late in the game, with Williams throwing three straight incompletions to turn the ball over on downs.
Here’s how the game unfolded.
Inactives: 2 starters active on offensive line, but depth takes a hit
Bears offensive tackle Braxton Jones stands on the field during warmups on Dec. 22, 2024. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Bears left tackle Braxton Jones and left guard Teven Jenkins are active Sunday against the Lions after missing time during the week with injuries.
Jones missed Monday night’s game against the Minnesota Vikings with a concussion and was listed as questionable for Sunday because he needed to clear the last hurdle in protocol. But he will return for the Bears’ second-to-last home game at Soldier Field.
Jenkins, who had a calf injury during the week, worked out pregame and was cleared to be active. But the Bears offensive line depth beyond those two took a couple of hits.
The Bears added backup guard/center Doug Kramer to the injury report Saturday with a shoulder injury, and he is inactive. Guard/center Ryan Bates is also out after the Bears put him on injured reserve with a concussion.
Rookie tackle Kiran Amegadjie, who struggled in his first career start last week in place of Jones, is also inactive, apparently a healthy scratch in favor of keeping tackle Larry Borom active. The Bears activated offensive lineman Chris Glaser from the practice squad to provide additional depth.
Defensive tackle Gervon Dexter will miss his second straight game with a knee injury. Running back Travis Homer, who has a hamstring injury, is out. Defensive back Ameer Speed and linebacker Noah Sewell are also inactive.
Cornerback Jaylon Johnson, who was ill during the week, will play Sunday.
For the Lions, running back David Montgomery, linebacker Kwon Alexander, offensive linemen Giovanni Manu, Graham Glasgow and Colby Sorsdal and defensive linemen Jonah Williams and Brodric Martin are inactive.
Halftime: Mistakes cost Bears as Lions take 27-14 lead
Bears offensive tackle Braxton Jones is carted off the field after suffering an injury in the second quarter against the Lions at Soldier Field. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
The Bears lost two fumbles, gave up an 82-yard touchdown pass and saw starting left tackle Braxton Jones carted off with what looked like a serious left ankle injury in the first half Sunday against the Lions.
Not surprisingly, all of those factors led to a 27-14 Lions halftime lead, though the Bears at least scored in the first half for the first time in four games.
Rookie wide receiver Rome Odunze was a part of two fumbles that led to 10 Lions points in the first quarter.
First, quarterback Caleb Williams and Odunze fumbled a handoff, and defensive lineman Josh Paschal recovered at the Bears 36.
The Lions capitalized with Jahmyr Gibbs’ 1-yard touchdown run to go ahead 10-0 with 5:34 left in the quarter. Gibbs rushed for 23 yards on the play after the fumble. He was stopped twice on carries from the 1 but made it in on the third try.
On the Bears’ next drive, Odunze rushed for a 19-yard gain, but Mitchell Agude and Brian Branch forced a fumble while bringing him down. Ben Niemann recovered at the Lions 40.
Seven plays later, Lions kicker Jake Bates made a 34-yard field goal for a 13-0 lead. Bates made a 30-yarder earlier in the quarter.
The Lions went up 20-0 on Jared Goff’s 82-yard touchdown pass to Jameson Williams with 12:49 to play in the second quarter. Williams blew by cornerback Tyrique Stevenson and safety Jonathan Owens before catching the pass and speeding into the end zone.
The Bears broke a three-game streak of being shut out in the first half when Williams found Cole Kmet for a 1-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 20-7. Williams hit Odunze with a 13-yard pass on fourth-and-3 during the drive and had a 14-yard pass to DJ Moore to get the Bears to the 5.
The Lions responded with an 11-play, 70-yard touchdown drive, capped by Goff’s 8-yard pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown.
But the Bears came back in the final minute of the half with Williams’ 45-yard touchdown pass to Keenan Allen to cut the lead to 27-14.
The Bears lost Jones to a left ankle injury midway through the second quarter. Bears staff put an air cast on Jones’ leg and carted him off the field after the entire Bears sideline came out to surround him.
Left guard Teven Jenkins left earlier in the half with a calf injury. Jones and Jenkins were replaced by Larry Borom and Jake Curhan, respectively.
Williams completed 13 of 21 passes for 198 yards and the two touchdowns in the half. But the Bears managed only 27 rushing yards.
Goff threw for 254 yards and Gibbs rushed for 79.
Catch up on all of our coverage.
5 things to watch — plus our predictions
The past two weeks’ results seem to provide evidence of a Bears team that is totally spent and struggling to generate the requisite energy and focus to remain competitive against quality opponents. In blowout losses, they have been outscored 37-0 in the first half and, by their own admission, victimized by incredibly sloppy execution across all phases.
The last time the Bears even held a lead? Way back on Nov. 24. Whoa.
Interim coach Thomas Brown also took exception to the notion that his team is out of gas.
“If you watch the tape, our guys battled until the very end,” he said. “Saying we don’t have a lot left in the tank alludes to our guys quitting. And I didn’t see that at all.”
Bears coaching search
Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson watches from the sideline on Dec. 6, 2024, in Detroit. (Carlos Osorio/AP)
A prospect with a defensive background likely would have to blow the Bears away with a detailed plan centered around QB Caleb Williams to guide the organization back to relevance.
One bright possibility certain to garner the attention of the Bears and other teams searching for their next hire in the upcoming hiring cycle will be on the opposite sideline Sunday afternoon at Soldier Field — Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. Read more here.
Positive affirmations — and a rematch
Caleb Williams said he is trying to stay in the moment as he finishes out the final three games of his rookie season.
But he also has been keeping an eye on the future by writing notes about things he wants to improve or topics he wants to research in the offseason. He started the notes midseason and said he has five to eight things he wants to go over when he has more time. Read more here.
About Week 15
Bears defensive end Montez Sweat (98) and teammates react after an offside penalty was called on Sweat late in the second quarter against the Vikings on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
The Bears have gone from finding different ways to squander game-winning opportunities in crunch time to getting blown out.
While Monday night’s 30-12 loss to the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium was a relatively close game score-wise until the end of the third quarter, it never felt like the Bears had much of a shot.
The defense battled tough, but the Bears were a wreck on third down and couldn’t overcome a slew of self-inflicted errors in losing for the eighth consecutive time to fall to 4-10. Read more here.
Originally Published: December 22, 2024 at 3:22 PM CST
