Why the Chicago Bears' defense faces the most pressure in Thanksgiving showdown vs. Detroit
LAKE FOREST, Ill. - The Chicago Bears' short week included some heady preparation.
They can't get to everything, but they'll need to try to in order to slow down the Detroit Lions' offense.
"What can I say about this offense? Very prolific," Bears defensive coordinator Eric Washington said. "
This is because the Bears' defense has struggled. A top-10 unit has since leveled off and allowed uncharacteristic mistakes. Last week, the defense allowed 69-yard gain and a game-winning drive in overtime.
"There'll be some wrinkles that'll be thrown at us, and we know that there'll be some things that he will feature specifically against our defensive construct," Washington said. "We have to be ready. We have to utilize our rules and just be ready to go."
Prolific is a good descriptor of the Lions' offense.
Take these stats into consideration: Detroit ranks first in the NFL in points per game, first in total first downs and second in yards per game. The Lions don't just move the ball, they get it into the end zone.
Going deeper on the Lions in their offense specifically, they also rank sixth in the NFL in total passing yards and fourth in the NFL in total rush yards.
Needless to say, the Bears are getting arguably the best offense in the NFL on the road, in nationally televised game, in the midst of a defensive slump. Those three things don't add up to a fun time for Chicago.
But, the Bears defense has the talent to put together a good game against Detroit.
The Bears have gotten the best of Lions quarterback Jared Goff in the past, too. In nine career games against Chicago, Goff has thrown 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Nine of those 10 interceptions have come in three games, and five of those 10 have occurred in the last two games the Bears played against the Lions.
Jaylon Johnson spoke on Monday about how turnovers were a spot the Bears excelled at against the Lions in 2023.
"From the two games we had at least seven," Johnson said. "That's what we did good."
Still, that was 2023. In 2024, the Bears defense has struggled in key moments since returning from the bye week. The run defense is one of those areas, and Johnson stopping the run comes down to execution.
"The game's never perfect," Johnson said. "There's times where we can get put in better position at certain times of the game, but for the most part it's on us to execute."
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Chicago Bears begin short week with daunting tasks: Getting right and preparing for Detroit
Turning it all around is a massive undertaking. First, it starts with winning on the road against NFC North leader and NFC crown contender Detroit. Second, it involves getting right.
Execution is the word of the week, especially for a team like the Lions.
Detroit has amassed 668 rushing yards after contact and 1,639 receiving yards after contact. The Lions don't just break tackles, they thrive on turning contact into momentum.
"We have to make sure, first of all, that we have great population at the point of the attack, wherever that happens to be down the field with our safeties, corners on the perimeter with screens," Washington said. "We have to just do a great job of making sure we get people there, and then we do an exceptional job in establishing ourselves for leverage and tackling the ball carrier."
To Washington, that means getting details down.
Even in his 17th season in the NFL, correcting the smaller details in Week 12 isn't a rarity. It's not even unusual. It's something to expect.
"You have to go back and kind of reteach things under the best circumstances," Washington said. "It's not due to lack of professionalism, it's not due to lack of attention to detail. As I mentioned, sometimes when guys are, I don't want to say overzealous because we want everybody wanting to be at the point of attack and finish a ball play. You have to make sure you do that in a way that doesn't compromise your overall structure."
That structure includes: Defending the run, attacking the line of scrimmage, creating negative plays, and putting Detroit in third-and-long situations.
That's what the Bears will focus on as a top-10 unit aims to get back to top-10 form.
"That's our formula," Washington said. "We're going to continue to work and tweak this formula until we get it the way that we know we're capable of."