Bears lose ninth straight: What worked, what didn’t?
The Bears dropped their ninth straight game, setting the second-longest streak in franchise history, in a 34-17 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday at Soldier Field. Here’s what you need to know.
Three moments that mattered
1. Sums it all up: The Lions' fourth touchdown of the day summed up how the Bears season has gone in many ways. Lions quarterback Jared Goff appeared to stumble after taking the snap. He then found wide-open Sam LaPorta for a 21-yard touchdown to give the Lions a 34-14 lead with 12:18 left in the third quarter.
2. Confidence booster: Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams found receiver Keenan Allen for an impressive touchdown just before halftime. Williams placed the ball perfectly between two defenders to hit Allen down the sideline for a 45-yard touchdown with 46 seconds left. The touchdown was Williams' longest of the year.
3. Who has it?: A Bears mistake in the first quarter gave the Lions early momentum. Williams and rookie wide receiver Rome Odunze couldn’t connect on a handoff and the Lions recovered the fumble on the Bears’ 36-yard line. The Lions went on to score their first touchdown of the game to take a 10-0 lead with 9:35 left.
Three things that worked
1. Showing continued growth: Williams continued to show the Bears drafted their franchise quarterback. Williams threw for 332 yards, his third-highest total this season, and two touchdowns. He hasn’t thrown an interception during the nine-game losing streak and has thrown 10 touchdowns.
2. Season’s best: Williams and Allen had a strong connection Sunday, setting up Allen’s best game in a Bears uniform. Allen caught nine passes for 140 yards and a touchdown. Sunday marked Allen’s season-high in receiving yards and was the most he’s caught since he had 175 against the Lions last season in Week 9 with the Chargers.
3. Getting some stops: Although the Bears’ defense couldn’t completely stop the Lions’ offense, it picked up some wins Sunday. The Bears stopped the Lions from scoring a touchdown on three of their five trips to the red zone. The defense also stopped the Lions on their lone fourth-down attempt.
Three things that didn’t
1. First quarter offense: The offense’s struggles with scoring in the first quarter didn’t improve. The Bears went three-and-out on their opening possession and then fumbled the ball away on their next two drives. Sunday was the fourth straight game the offense failed to score in the first quarter and the 11th time this year.
2. Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, a potential Bears head coaching candidate, put together another strong game plan. Detroit finished with 474 total yards of offense while Goff threw for 336 yards and three touchdowns.
3. Two first quarter turnovers by the offense put the Bears in a tough spot. After Williams fumbled the ball on the team’s second drive, Odunze fumbled it after a 19-yard catch on the Bears' next drive. Sunday was the Bears' third multiple-turnover game, their first since Week 3 against the Colts.
What’s next?
The Bears play their second game in five days and third in 11 days Thursday when they host the Seattle Seahawks.