The Bears had a lot of explaining to do after they allowed the Lions to drop 34 points in the fourth quarter back in late September. On the plus side for the D, unlike the first game versus the Lions the Bears will have back Charles Tillman, Lance Briggs and Adam Archuleta all of who missed the first game. The Bears will also have a QB who isn't starting his first game in 2 years.
This defense still has a lot to prove. They have given up a lot of points late in games and had it not been for the Bears last minute 97-yard TD drive last week, they would have given up the go ahead TD late in the game to the Eagles.
The Bears are currently giving up an average of 357.4 yards per game ranking them 25th. They are 26th versus the rush allowing 132.6 yards per game and 27th against the pass giving up 224.9 per game. Those are numbers that makes Bears fans sick to their stomach. The Bears are giving up 23.6 points per game.
Detroit's offense is ranked 16th. They get 85.5 (27th) yards on the ground and 243 (7th) through the air. They have Kevin Jones back in the line up and while he is still not a huge threat it does boost their run game. The Lions score 23.3 points per game which is good for 10th in the NFL.
On the flip side, the Bears offense has been taking big strides at least on the passing side of the ball. They are currently 16th in passing yards (220.6). Brian Griese has stabilized this portion of the offense. Now if we can only get out abysmal running game going. The Bears are the only team that does not have a rush of over 20 yards. They rank 30th in rushing yards with 81.1 per game. The Bears average 19.6 a game though that number is increasing each week.
Detroit's defense is not good at all. This should result in another big game for the Bears. They give up 116.5 rush yards and 269.3 pass yards.
Things to Watch:
--Brian Griese currently has an 86 percent QB rating, 17th in he league. Can Griese go for his 3rd straight 300 yard game?
--After Philly had some success by not kicking to Devin Hester even once, will Detroit, who Hester destroyed last meeting, have the stones to kick to him? And what 'surprises' do the Bears have in store to get the ball to Hester?
--The Bears need to address the run game and soon. The colder weather is coming and running becomes more important. Whether it is making changes on the line or at back, they need to jump start the run game. Ced's 3.1 average will bury us later in the year.
--Can the Bear's regain some of what they used to be against one of the league's best passing games?