Detroit staged a furious comeback last week but fell short in a 34-27 loss at Green Bay. Chicago remained winless after a 31-17 loss to Dallas last Sunday.
The Lions offense is averaging 27 ppg which puts them in the top 5 in scoring in the NFL. QB Matthew Stafford has already thrown for 985 yards and 7 TDs. He has developed a strong connection with WR Marvin Jones, who leads the NFL with 408 receiving yards. TE Eric Ebron is finally playing like a Top 10 pick and should do well against a Bears defense that hasn’t defended the middle of the field very well in pass defense. RB Theo Riddick hasn’t done a good job as a runner (3.2 ypc) but has 16 receptions for 130 yards and a score. WRs Golden Tate and Anquan Boldin have produced as well. Chicago’s run defense is ranked 31st in the league and injuries have hit the front seven hard. Look for rookie RB Dwayne Washington to get more touches as Detroit doesn’t want Stafford throwing the ball 40-50 times per game. The Bears have only 4 sacks on the year.
Chicago’s offense gets a break this week as the Lions are allowing 28 ppg. However, they have scored only 45 points in 3 games as injuries to QB Jay Cutler (check status) and RB Jeremy Langford have hurt the offense. QB Brian Hoyer started last week but didn’t start producing until the Bears were 21 points behind. Detroit’s pass defense has not been stout and they have given up 10 TD passes while only picking off one pass. WRs Alshon Jeffery, Kevin White and Eddie Royal should be able to do damage against this secondary provided Hoyer gets them the ball. He hasn’t been sacked yet this year while Cutler was taken down 8 times in a game and a half. Little-known DL Kerry Hyder leads Detroit with 4 sacks. Rookie RB Jordan Howard will be a bigger part of the game plan this week and the Lions have to up their run defense (5.1 ypc allowed) against the physical rookie.
