Bears Embarrassed in Detroit: Lions Roll 52–21

The Bears’ trip to Detroit was nothing short of a disaster, ending in a 52–21 beatdown that exposed just about every weakness this team has.

It all started on the opening kickoff, when Cairo Santos sailed the ball out of bounds and gifted the Lions prime field position. Detroit only needed five plays to find the end zone. To their credit, the Bears answered with an impressive 74-yard drive capped off by Rome Odunze taking a crossing route 28 yards for a touchdown. But even on that drive, right tackle Darnell Wright picked up his third penalty of the young season with yet another false start.

After an exchange of punts, the Lions capitalized on a strong return, needing just four plays to make it 14–7. Chicago looked like they might respond again, but D’Andre Swift coughed the ball up at the Detroit 32, stalling all momentum. The defense held, but cornerback Jaylon Johnson left the game with what could be a multi-week injury after breaking up a deep pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown.

That injury marked the beginning of the floodgates. The Bears’ next offensive series featured two penalties, a fumble (recovered), and an interception that gave Detroit life. Jared Goff and the Lions took full advantage, tacking on two more touchdowns before halftime. Odunze grabbed his second score of the day, but Chicago still trailed 28–14 at the break.

Any hope of a comeback died immediately in the second half. The Bears went three-and-out with just one yard gained, while another false start killed any rhythm. Detroit responded with a field goal, then scored on every drive until their final possession when they simply ran clock. The Lions cruised to a 52–21 win as Chicago added a late touchdown in garbage time.

Overreaction Takeaways:

• Penalties are killing this team. Eight more flags for 50 yards, mostly on the offense, wiped out any momentum. You can’t win games when you’re constantly playing behind the sticks.

• Caleb Williams looks too much like last year. He finished 19-of-30 for 207 yards, 2 TDs, and 1 INT, but also took 4 sacks for -29 yards. He’s still holding onto the ball too long, hesitating on reads, and not trusting his receivers. That’s a recipe for stalled drives.

• The run game is there, but underused. Swift ran 12 times for 63 yards (5.3 YPC) and Monangai added 28 yards on 7 carries. But penalties and stalled drives made it irrelevant.

• The defense is flat-out concerning. Loose coverage all day let Goff carve them up, and Stevenson had no answer for St. Brown (115 yards, 3 TDs). If they don’t tighten up, no opponent will respect this unit.

Bottom line: This Bears team looks undisciplined, underprepared, and uninspired. Between penalties, defensive lapses, and Caleb’s slow decision-making, it’s hard to see how they win five games this year.

Written by Ryan Burhite