Getty Damon Harrison after a game.
The Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears are two teams who are battling for little more than draft positioning and bragging rights at this very moment given where both are in the standings.
To that end, the Thanksgiving Day game has lost a bit of luster. Regardless of that, it’s still football on a holiday in front of a national television audience, so there is a ton to play for. Like they have been in previous weeks, the Lions are a dinged up team coming into this game, and will be missing plenty of key pieces for the contest.
Here’s a look at the inactives for this week, including their ramifications on the game.
Lions Inactives
QB Matthew Stafford
CB Rashaan Melvin
CB Jamal Agnew
DT Damon Harrison Sr.
CB Michael Jackson
G Beau Benzschawel
G Oday Aboushi
Analysis
Matthew Stafford continues to get all of the hype, but for Detroit, the loss of two lower tier names in wideout Marvin Hall and cornerback and special teams ace Jamal Agnew is huge as well. Both of those players have been dynamic in terms of the big plays this season in Detroit, and the team certainly misses them for their creation. Losing Melvin is tough as well given the role he has filled at cornerback. The hope is Amani Oruwariye can continue to fill the void capably. Otherwise, the team will miss Driskel considering they have to start Blough. He will be available to play. Missing Harrison is also tough.
From Chicago’s perspective, the team will miss cornerback Sherrick McManis, wideout Taylor Gabriel and offensive lineman Bobby Massie. Those players are capable of playing big roles for the team at their various spots, and Detroit not seeing them could play to the team’s advantage. The Bears are also thin at tight end, missing Ben Brauneker and Adam Shaheen as well, which will be a blow for the offense. Braunecker scored an important touchdown against the Lions a few weeks back.
Lions vs. Bears Primer
Detroit and Chicago will kick off at 12:30 p.m. EST from Ford Field in Detroit. The game will be broadcast on Fox, with Joe Buck, Troy Aikman on the call. Chicago has been a narrow favorite for the matchup which is essentially too close to call given the struggles of both teams. One thing is for certain, and it’s the fact that running back Bo Scarbrough could play a much bigger role in this game than any of the Detroit runners did the last time around. In order to win, the Lions will have to find a way to slow down the Chicago offense, which has been prone to stalling out this year. They will need to come up with a few key defensive stops, while finding a way to get their own weapons loose in a bigger way. Besides playing the rival Bears, it’s always a special day in Detroit on Thanksgiving, with so many special memories of the past for fans to cherish.
With the reveal of these inactives, it’s almost time to kick off the Lions vs. Bears on Thanksgiving Day.
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