Detroit Lions do the impossible: Take a step back while falling flat on their face

CHICAGO — The Detroit Lions got what they deserved.

A big fat disappointing loss.

Against an inferior team.

The Lions couldn’t get out of their own way in a 28-13 embarrassment Sunday against the Chicago Bears.

It was a series of false starts and dropped passes and missed chances and an offense that disappeared and a frustrating series of three-and-outs — and ugh — please make this stop.

For the sake of the children.

THE GAME: Lions thumped by Chicago Bears, 28-13, in jarring performance

The Lions couldn’t do little things like, say, snap the ball — I’m not sure if the blame was on Graham Glasgow or Jared Goff. But the Lions botched a snap and the Bears grabbed it. Five plays later, Bears QB Justin Fields ran into the end zone, giving Chicago a 25-13 lead.

The Lions didn’t have discipline at the worst possible time. Just a couple plays before that fumble, Aidan Hutchinson jumped offsides on a fourth-and-13. With the free play, Fields found a single-covered D.J. Moore for a 38-yard touchdown.

The Lions came out of halftime in a slumber, and they didn’t do squat in the third quarter — three-straight three-and outs.

The Lions couldn’t hold onto the ball at the worst possible time.  Jahmyr Gibbs dropped a pass with all kinds of blockers in front of him. Shoot, it might have been a touchdown. But he dropped it.

Just let it slip through his fingers, which seemed to sum up this game.

At a time when you want to start playing your best ball, the Lions did the impossible: They fell on their faces, while taking a step backward.

This one is on coach Dan Campbell — this team did not look prepared and was certainly not sharp.

But I don’t mean to absolve the players: It’s on them, too.

This was an incredible wasted opportunity.

And it raises all kinds of concerns.

Think about the upcoming schedule.

If this team continues to play like this, beating Denver is not a certainty on Ssturday, a split against Minnesota is a best-case scenario, and there’s no way it’s winning at Dallas.

It makes you wonder: What is this team?

I know they don’t give up.

But it’s so strange.

These Lions are just so all over the place.

They're searching for consistency and only finding frustration and concerns.

It’s hard to pinpoint the issue after this game.

This wasn’t the defense falling apart.

This wasn’t a string of interceptions like Goff had in his first game against the Bears.

This wasn’t a string of fumbles, like against the Packers.

This was just an overall collapse.

This was an offense that suddenly dried up. Like all the magic went out of Ben Johnson’s offense.

Yes, early in the game, the problem was stopping Fields.

It was like one of those breaking-news, breathless weather reports, in which the TV weathercaster is full of concern: “Watch out. Take cover. This is serous. There is trouble on the horizon.”

You can plan for it.

You can expect it.

And then it hits.

And it’s pure devastation.

That’s what Fields was at the start against the Lions.

A force of nature that they couldn't stop.

He impacted everything.

And even though they knew it was coming, they were helpless.

Third-and-3?  He dropped back to pass, then ran right up the gut and got 13 yards. That set up the Bears' first scoring drive.

He was the X-factor.

The Y-factor.

And the Z-factor.

But eventually, the Lions found a way to corral him.

Or maybe, he just decided to stop running and just throw it.

The first time the Lions played the Bears, on Nov. 19 in Detroit, they fell behind and then racked up 17 points in a 3-minute barrage that felt like a Disney movie come to life.

This time?

It was like a horror film that couldn’t end soon enough.

Instead of taking a step forward, this team took a major step backward.

Instead of imposing its will, it got embarrassed.

And I’m really starting to wonder: What is this team?

Contact Jeff Seidel at jseidel@freepress.com or follow him @seideljeff.

LAST WEEK IN NEW ORLEANS Lions faced a critical moment late vs. Saints and passed with flying colors

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions' loss to Chicago Bears played out like a horror movie