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The Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears are currently a lot alike in terms of their present and future in the NFC North, but even that isn’t enough to make the Lions favorites for a head to head matchup.
This week, fresh off an organizational bloodletting, the Lions roll into a Week 13 matchup against Chicago a battered and bruised team. Injuries are piling up, the squad is 4-7 and there doesn’t seem to be much light at the end of the tunnel as it relates to a positive finish to the season.
Arguably, the same could be said for the Bears, who come into the game with a 5-6 record and an elongated five game losing streak. Even though that’s the case, the early line sees the Bears a narrow favorite for the game between 3.5 and 4 points.
Both the Lions and Bears can be seen as mirror images of one another right now considering shaky quarterback play, a defense that struggles at times and an offense that struggles to put points on the board. To that end, it’s not surprising to see the teams be projected for a close game. Ineptitude might rule the day in this rivalry battle in Chicago.
Lions-Bears Week 13 Primer
The game will represent a fresh start for the Lions off the Matt Patricia era, which mercifully reached its end on Saturday afternoon. Patricia famously never beat the Bears during his tenure, and was routinely humbled by struggling Chicago quarterback Mitch Trubisky. It’s probably not a stretch to say that was a big reason why Patricia and Bob Quinn lost their jobs after such a brutal string of defeats and a 13-29-1 record for the coach. At 4-7, the Lions don’t have much hope as it relates to a playoff run, so the team will be looking to build some momentum for the 2021 season and a new coach and front office direction. Chicago, like Detroit, remains on the periphery of the NFC North playoff race at 5-6, but each team doesn’t seem to be going anywhere considering the wild card picture at this very moment. This matchup will be more or less for bragging rights, and to see if Darrell Bevell can make any type of case for himself as an interim coach as Romeo Crennel and Raheem Morris have done this season.
Detroit Looking to Avenge Heartbreaking Week 1 Loss
The Lions and Bears kicked off the season in September, and for Lions fans, it was a day they’d rather forget in a big way. Detroit famously led 23-6 and allowed the Bears to roar back in a huge way to retake the lead late. The Lions got the ball into Chicago territory and Matthew Stafford connected on what looked like the game winning score to running back D’Andre Swift until Swift simply dropped the ball in the end zone. It was a major frustration for Lions fans, the coaching staff and obviously the team ownership to start the year with such a brutal defeat. Arguably, it helped pave the way toward Detroit’s full housecleaning a few months later.
While a win isn’t likely to do anything in the standings for the Lions, it could help the fans feel better about where things are headed plus net them a victory over a hated rival they haven’t beaten in a while. At this point, that’s all there is left to play for as part of another lost football season in the Motor City.
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