Bears' Moore standing tall with nickel back position

D.J. Moore was all but forgotten last year as a rookie, when he played briefly in just three games, mostly on special teams.

But the 5-foot-9, 183-pound fourth-round pick has been playing with the starters, in passing situations, for the past couple weeks, and he expects to be the starting nickel back Sunday against the Lions.

"It was very hard to sit out just knowing that you could play, seeing other people do it, thinking you could do it better," Moore said of his rookie season. "You always know you can do it better."

Moore learned some valuable lessons on the sidelines, though.

"I learned to keep your head up, keep your mouth shut, do what you've got to do," he said. "Just do your job, that's pretty much it."

The nickel back, which lines up inside the cornerbacks, is responsible for covering the slot receiver and is generally more involved in defending the inside run.

"It's more like a small linebacker," Moore said. "But it's pretty much the same."

The nickel can be a more physical position.

"Everybody's got to tackle," Moore said. "If you can't tackle you don't really need to play that much I guess."

With his size, Moore had to prove he could play physical football.

"Everybody wants to see if you can hit," he said. "But it don't matter about the size because somebody's always bigger than somebody else. Everybody's got to prove they can tackle, big or small."

Moore, who came to training camp with no guarantee he'd even make the final roster, has demonstrated additional talents he didn't get to showcase last season.

"As a rookie coming in, it's pretty hard to really get into the mix," coach Lovie Smith said. "He didn't really get an opportunity, but we had a chance to see some of the things he does well: excellent hands, good quickness, (and he) was productive in college. Coming into training camp, he was just kind of one of the guys. But that's what you get sometimes from training camp, some players really step up and show you that they're ready to take the next step and help you win games."

Road kill: The Detroit Lions have lost 20 straight road games, the fourth-longest losing streak as visitors in NFL history.

But second-year Lions coach Jim Schwarz says there isn't any secret to winning on the road in the NFL.

"You win on the road in this league by having good players, having a good scheme, coaching them well and playing good on Sundays," Schwarz said. "You don't win because you take the train or take a plane or know how to pack a suitcase or know how to check into a hotel room. Winning on the road in the NFL is a result of having good players who are coached well, and I like where we are there."

Coincidentally, Detroit's last victory on the road was at Soldier Field against the Bears on Oct. 28, 2007, when it won 16-7. The Lions were 2-14 overall last season in Schwarz's first year, after he took over for current Bears defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli, whose team was 0-16 in 2008.

"We haven't been a good team the last couple of years," Schwarz said. "We haven't won very many games at home either."

Getting healthy: Linebacker Lance Briggs (knee) was limited somewhat at practice, but safety Craig Steltz was the only player who did not practice Wednesday, although he was able to do some individual work on the side.