CHICAGO — Bears quarterback Justin Fields proved to be every bit the dual-threat nightmare the Detroit Lions anticipated, but despite a stellar day with his feet, a critical error with his arm opened the door for the Lions to complete a 14-point fourth quarter comeback at Solider Field on Sunday.
The Lions scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter, the final coming on a 1-yard run by Jamaal Williams that capped the comeback and 31-30 victory. That followed a 21-yard interception return by cornerback Jeff Okudah earlier in the quarter, capitalizing on one of the few mistakes Fields made all day.
A week after setting the NFL's single-game record for rushing yards at his position, the elusiveness of Fields showed up on the first snap against the Lions as he kept a zone-read and ran around the left edge of the formation for a 28-yard gain.
Fields would carry it three times, gaining 47 of the Bears' 70 rushing yards on the opening possession, which was only derailed due to a holding penalty in red zone. That led to settling for a 33-yard Cairo Santos field goal.
The Lions managed to counter punch with a versatile offensive attack that saw five different receivers targeted by quarterback Jared Goff and four different ball carriers taking handoffs. Receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown did the majority of the damage, catching three throws, including two for third-down conversions before the drive stalled deep in Chicago territory, resulting in a 25-yard field goal by Michael Badgley that tied the game at three.
After surviving a long kickoff return and forcing a punt, thanks to a drive-killing facemask infraction against the Bears, the Lions grabbed the lead midway through the second quarter with a 13-play, 80-yard touchdown drive.
Goff connected with Kalif Raymond for a 22-yard gain on third-and-15 to extend the possession and the quarterback followed it up with a trio of completions to St. Brown for 56 yards. A defensive pass interference call in the end zone set the Lions up with first-and-goal from the 1-yard line, but it still took four snaps to punch it in with Goff finding tight end Brock Wright leaking across the formation for a 2-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal.
Chicago was able to tie it back up with 21 seconds remaining in the half thanks again to the slipperiness of Fields, who used his feet to convert three third downs. The first was a designed run, before he wriggled free from sacks on the other two, darting around the left edge for a 1-yard touchdown to cap the series after breaking free from the grasp of Lions defensive lineman Isaiah Buggs.
Coming out of the locker room, Detroit failed to maintain its offensive momentum, going three-and-out when Williams was dropped for a loss on third-and-1.
Chicago, meanwhile, continued to move the ball well, with Fields leaning more heavily on his arm. The dual-threat QB completed three quick throws for 47 yards into Lions territory and finished the drive with a 6-yard toss to tight end Cole Kmet on a designed rollout after safety Kerby Joseph lost his footing in coverage.
Detroit's ability to respond was hurt by a botched handoff on an end-around to Raymond. The receiver was able to recover the loose ball, but the play lost 11 yards, leading to punting the ball back to the Bears.
Chicago needed just three plays to widen their lead. After a pair of successful runs to open the possession, Joseph bit hard on a play fake, allowing Kmet to run free beyond Detroit's secondary. Fields found his wide open tight end for a 50-yard touchdown, putting the Bears up, 24-10, late in the third quarter.
Attempting to stay within reach, the Lions drove to midfield, but tight end Shane Zylstra couldn't hold on to a third-down pass while sliding to his knees, leading to a punt. But Detroit's defense quickly got the ball back, forcing a three-and-out for the first time in the game.
Chicago penalties played a critical role in Detroit getting back on track. A 15-yard late hit on Goff pushed Detroit across midfield, and an illegal hands to the face wiped out an interception. One play later, running back D'Andre Swift scampered through a huge hole on the left side for a 9-yard touchdown, slicing the deficit to seven with 11:37 to go.
Penalties continued to trouble the Bears as a holding infraction erased a first down run, instead putting them in a second-and-long situation. Pressure up the middle by Buggs forced Fields to overthrow his target on the next snap and the errant pass was picked off by Okudah, who returned it for the touchdown, tying the game following the extra point.
But the good vibes for the Lions were short lived. Three plays into the ensuring series, Fields found a lane around the right side on a zone-read, avoided a leaping tackle attempt by Joseph and outran the remaining defenders for a 67-yard touchdown to put the Bears back on top, 30-24, after Santos sent the extra point wide.
The two sides traded punts, before the Lions marched 91 yards to take the lead. Goff threaded a slant to Kennedy on third down, leading the receiver into open space where he was able to turn the short throw into a 43-yard gain. A 13-yard tap pass to St. Brown down to the 1-yard line set up a Williams touchdown plunge and Badley's extra point put the Lions up, 31-30.
The Bears had plenty of time to respond, taking over with 2:17 remaining, but despite squirming free from two defenders, Fields was finally dropped by Julian Okwara on fourth down to give the ball back to the Lions. Williams sealed the victory with a first down run, allowing Goff to take a knee to end the game.
