Detroit Lions fall flat in 28-13 loss to Chicago Bears: Game recap

The Detroit Lions were dominated and shut out in the second half in the 28-13 loss to the Chicago Bears in Week 14.

The Lions, who entered the week at 9-3, will have to wait another week to try to reach double-digit wins for the first time since 2014. The Lions led by three at halftime, but could not do anything positive in the final 30 minutes as Chicago outscored them 18-0.

The Lions are now 1-1 against the Bears this season and 2-2 against NFC North opponents. The Bears moved to 5-8 with the win while the Lions dropped to 9-4 and the comfortable division lead has been tightened.

The game kicked off from Soldier Field at 1 p.m. It was televised on Fox and livestreamed on Fubo.

Lions vs. Bears game recap

Final: Lions fall flat in second half in 28-13 loss to the Bears

The Lions were outscored 18-0 in the final 30 minutes to lose to the Bears for the first time since 2021. Detroit fell behind 10-0 early but rallied in the second quarter to take a 13-10 lead into the halftime locker room. The momentum did not carry over, however, into the second half. The Lions started the second half with three straight three-and-outs offensively, while giving up a field goal to tie the game at 13.

The game flipped on its head when the Bears scored the go-ahead touchdown. The Lions forced a fourth-and-13 for the Bears offense from the Detroit 38-yard line, and the Bears kept the offense on the field. Chicago got a free play because a Lions defender jumped offsides, and Justin Fields found a wide open D.J. Moore for the game-winning score. The Lions offense continued to sputter in the comeback attempt, only crossing midfield once in the second half, and turned the ball over twice to sink any chances to win.

Jared Goff had another shaky performance, throwing two interceptions and losing a fumble right after the Moore touchdown, which led to another Chicago score. Goff was 20-of-35 for 161 yards, one touchdown and the three giveaways. Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery both rushed for 66 yards apiece, but slowed down in the second half during the comeback. Amon-Ra St. Brown was held to three catches and Sam LaPorta had two.

2:31, fourth quarter: Jared Goff intercepted on 4th down again

Jared Goff has three turnovers against the Bears for the second straight game. On fourth-and-24, Goff chucked up a prayer over the middle before getting sacked, and Tremaine Edmunds calmly hauled in the ball for the turnover to run out the clock.

5:16, fourth quarter: Lions fail on fourth down again

The Lions offense could not do anything in the second half and had another drive end on fourth down. Detroit moved into Chicago territory, but couldn't get past the Chicago 38. On fourth-and-10, Goff underthrew Amon-Ra St. Brown over the middle and the pass was incomplete.

9:20, fourth quarter: Cairo Santos hits 3rd FG to extend Bears lead to 28-13

The defense stood strong after the turnover on downs and forced another Cairo Santos field goal, which he made from 28 yards out.

12:13, fourth quarter: Lions stopped on 4th down, Bears take over at Detroit 30

Detroit doesn't look like it has the late-game magic like the last game against the Bears. The offense picked up nine yards on the first three plays and decided to keep the offense on the field for fourth down. Jahmyr Gibbs was stuffed in the backfield on a power run off the right tackle for a turnover on downs. The Bears took over at the Detroit 30 primed to build a bigger lead.

14:12, fourth quarter: Justin Fields scrambles for TD, Bears lead 25-13

It took two minutes for the fumble to turn into another Bears touchdown. Justin Fields scrambled right and ran untouched to the pylon for an 11-yard touchdown. The Lions did not have anyone in contain for the speedy quarterback. The Bears decided to go for two but could not convert, so the lead remains at 12.

1:00, third quarter: Jared Goff fumbles snap, Bears recover

The bad third quarter turned worse on the second snap of the ensuing drive. Jared Goff mishandled the snap from Graham Glasgow and fumbled. The Bears dove on the loose ball to take over at the Lions 29-yard line.

1:36, third quarter: Fields finds D.J. Moore for 38-yard TD, Bears lead 19-13

The Bears retook the lead late in the third quarter on a deep shot to D.J. Moore on fourth-and-13 from the Lions 38-yard line. The Lions hit Justin Fields hard twice on second and third down to force fourth and long, and the Bears kept the offense on the field instead attempting the long kick. The Lions jumped offsides on fourth down, giving the Bears a free play, and Fields found a wide open D.J. Moore who beat Jerry Jacobs one-on-one on the outside for the touchdown. Romeo Okwara blocked the extra point to keep the deficit at six points.

8:38, third quarter: Bears tie game at 13 with field goal

The Lions went three-and-out on the first drive of the second half and the Bears answered with a 12-play, 65-yard drive that ended in another Cairo Santos field goal, this time from 25 yards. Chicago moved the ball through the air with chunk gains over the middle to reach the Detroit red zone. The Bears got down to the Lions' 7-yard line, but had to settle for the kick after two consecutive incompletions on second and third down.

Halftime: Lions control second quarter to take 13-10 halftime lead

The first half was a tale of two quarters in Chicago. The Bears jumped all over Detroit and built a 10-0 lead early thanks to two successful opening drives. It looked like the Bears were on their way to build a commanding lead before Ifeatu Melifonwu came up with a key fourth down stop to flip the momentum early in the second quarter.

The Lions scored on their last two drives of the half to take a 13-10 lead. The offense has heavily favored the run in the windy conditions inside Soldier Field. Jahmyr Gibbs has seven carries for 65 yards and a touchdown, while David Montgomery has 33 yards on six carries. Sam LaPorta and Jameson Williams have also gotten involved in the running game with carries. Jared Goff is 12-of-16 for 93 yards, one touchdown to Josh Reynolds and one interception early.

The Melifonwu stop was the turning point for the defense in the first half. After that stop, the Bears had minus-17 yards on the next two drives thanks to the pass rush's revival. Aidan Hutchinson recorded his first sack in three weeks and blew up a third down to end the first drive, and John Cominsky finished the half with a sack. The Bears have 147 total yards, with 95 coming on the ground.

0:26, second quarter: Josh Reynolds TD gives Lions a 13-10 lead

The offense found its rhythm in the second quarter. The Lions took most of the final five minutes off the clock with a 11-play drive spanning 53 yards filled with runs up the middle. Goff finished the drive with a 8-yard slant to a wide open Josh Reynolds in the end zone to take the lead. David Montgomery, Gibbs and even Sam LaPorta got carries on the drive as the Lions slowly marched through Bears territory into the end zone. Gibbs picked up two first downs with a run and a reception on a screen to keep the drive alive.

6:59, second quarter: Lions score on Jahmyr Gibbs run, trail Bears 10-6

The Lions showed the first signs of life on offense after the big fourth down stop.- Gibbs finished the drive by taking a pitch off the right edge after Goff faked a reverse for a untouched 12-yard touchdown. The play was set up by back-to-back reverses to Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. Detroit pounded the ball on the ground to begin the drive and move into Chicago territory. They reached the Chicago 38 and had to go for it on fourth-and-3. Goff found Donovan Peoples-Jones on a crossing route for a 17-yard gain to keep the drive alive. Riley Patterson missed the extra point after a botched snap.

11:39, second quarter: Lions defense answers with 4th down stop

The Lions' first big play came from the defense. The Bears moved into Detroit territory on the first play of the drive on a long pass to tight end Cole Kmet but the Lions defense got off the field four plays later. They stuffed three straight runs up the middle to force fourth-and-1 and the Bears kept the offense on the field. The Bears faked a quarterback sneak and pitched the ball out to D.J. Moore, who was stuffed behind the line by safety Ifeatu Melifonwu for the fourth down stop.

14:00, second quarter: Jared Goff intercepted on 4th down

The disastrous start continues for Detroit. The Lions moved the ball past midfield but reached fourth down at the Bears 36-yard line after Jahmyr Gibbs dropped a pass that would've most likely been a first down on third down. On fourth down, Goff tried to throw a corner route to Sam LaPorta, but Jaylon Johnson read the pass the whole way and jumped in front for the interception. Goff threw three interceptions in the last matchup with Chicago.

1:22, first quarter: Bears add field goal, Lions trail 10-0

The offense was slow out of the gates too and had to punt after picking up one first down. The Bears took over inside their own 10-yard line and proceeded to tear through the Lions defense once again. Justin Fields got the drive started with a long scramble on third down to move Chicago outside of their own 10. A few plays later, Fields found Darnell Mooney on an out route, and he turned it upfield into Lions territory. Alex Anzalone had a late hit on Mooney that moved the Bears into scoring position.

The Lions stood tall on the next three plays and finished the drive with a Jalen Reeves-Maybin sack on a double A-gap blitz to force the field goal. Cairo Santos hit the 46-yard field goal to make it a two-possession game. The Bears have 85 rushing yards on two drives, with 47 coming from Fields.

10:17, first quarter: Bears take 7-0 lead on D.J. Moore rushing TD

The Lions defense did not put up much of a fight on the first drive as the Bears marched right down the field to score a touchdown on the opening drive. D.J. Moore scored a 16-yard rushing touchdown off the left edge out of the wildcat to cap off the drive. Justin Fields completed both of his passes on the drive and ran the ball four times for 28 yards. The Bears won the coin toss and elected to receive.

Pregame notes

The last time these two teams played, the Lions played one of their worst games of the season for the first 55 minutes before rallying on both sides of the ball to escape with the 31-26 win. Jared Goff threw three interceptions, the only time he has ever done so as a Lion, before rallying to execute two last-minute drives to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

The Lions struggled to contain Chicago quarterback Justin Fields, who threw for 169 yards and ran for 104 in his first game back from a thumb injury. It was the third straight game Detroit has allowed Fields to rush for over 100 yards.

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It will be another challenge this week for the defense, which has struggled for more than a month, giving up an average of 30.3 points in the past four games. The Bears have the most success on the ground, rushing for 137.3 yards per game, third best in the NFL.

The Lions offense comes into the game second in total yards (400.6 per game) and sixth in points scored (27.3 per game), and will face a Bears defense trending up since adding Montez Sweat at the trade deadline. The Bears are tied for the best run defense in the NFL (79 ypg), and the Lions rank fourth in the league in rushing (137.3 ypg), so this is a strength-on-strength matchup.

Lions injury report

The Lions will be starting their ninth offensive line combination in 13 games due to the absence of Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow. He injured his knee in the first half against the Saints and will be replaced by Graham Glasgow, who was previously at right guard. Head coach Dan Campbell said Ragnow received “good news” in his MRI, but needs more time to heal.

The interior of the defensive line will also see new faces because defensive tackle Alim McNeil was placed on injured reserve for injuries suffered during the Saints game. The good news for the defense: Linebacker and signal caller/vocal leader Alex Anzalone is back in the lineup after missing last week with a thumb injury.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions vs. Chicago Bears: Game recap, highlights