The Lions hosted the Bears in Week 4 and produced a high-scoring victory over their NFC North rivals. The 40-32 victory by Detroit put the Lions in a tie for first place in the division with the once-undefeated Bears and gave them an advantage in the head-to-head standings. Detroit was able to cause a slew of turnovers, capped off by Bears quarterback Jay Cutler's three interceptions.
Bears vs. Lions 2013: Detroit makes up for the loss of Nate Burleson
SB Nation writers are sounding off about the Lions’ victory over the Bears.
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Lions running back Reggie Bush was the star of the game with 18 carries for 139 yards and a touchdown. His ability to gain 7.7 yards per carry enabled the Lions to control the clock and move the ball throughout the game. The Bears focused on stopping wide receiver Calvin Johnson and he finished with just 44 yards and a touchdown, but that opened the door for Detroit to romp on the ground. The lone positive for Chicago was the performance of running back Matt Forte, who rushed for 95 yards and a touchdown.
Steven Schweickert of Windy City Gridiron understands the magnitude of a Bears’ loss to an NFC North opponent:
The Bears offense just didn’t get consistently on track, as Jay Cutler threw three interceptions and a pair of touchdowns as the game was out of reach. The Bears tried to get back into the game with a fourth-quarter rally, but it just wasn’t enough.
The important thing to remember is that it’s a division loss, and it hurts because it gives the Lions the lead in the NFC North with the Bears and Lions tied at 3-1, but the Bears get another chance at Soldier Field later in the year to get a win against this team.
Sean Yuille of Pride of Detroit believes the Lions were able to replace wide receiver Nate Burleson's production in the win against the Bears:
So how exactly did the Lions make up for the loss of Burleson? Matthew Stafford spread the ball around pretty evenly amongst his running backs, wide receivers and tight ends. Here's the breakdown:
RBs: 8 catches on 11 targets, 64 yards
WRs: 7 catches on 15 targets, 102 yards, 1 touchdown
TEs: 8 catches on 9 targets, 76 yardsBelieve it or not, but Kris Durham actually led the Lions in receiving with 58 yards on 3 catches. Brandon Pettigrew was just behind with 7 catches for 54 yards. He especially was a lot more involved in the offense than usual, and I'm expecting that to continue with Burleson out for the foreseeable future.
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