DETROIT (670 The Score) — The Bears were blasted by the Lions, 52-21, at Ford Field on Sunday as head coach Ben Johnson's return to Detroit turned into an embarrassment.
Chicago's offense was a mixed bag, the defense was futile and several key young players who were recent draft picks of general manager Ryan Poles were missing in action. A Bears season that opened with high hopes just a week ago now feels so bleak after Chicago fell to 0-2.
Here are the observations from Detroit.
It's time to temper expectations for Johnson's first season
Back at the start of training camp, Johnson defined the process of growth as a race to the regular season. He believed the Bears could contend in 2025 but had to put forth the work to get there.
“There’s no reason why we can’t win this year,” Johnson then said at the conclusion of training camp, underscoring his belief in his team.
Two games have revealed the Bears' task in the marathon that is the 2025 season is to finish the race, because the goal of winning it outright isn't going to happen.
Johnson’s challenge in leading the Bears is greater than he probably imagined. There won’t be an immediate turnaround this season, and defining progress will be a task in its own right.
While Johnson and his coaching staff brought renewed energy to Halas Hall, the Bears have had their same abysmal 2024 form early on. They scraped rock bottom in 2024 amid a 10-game losing streak and haven’t ascended from there by any means.
On Sunday, the Bears allowed 52 points for the first time since 2014. They also allowed 511 total yards, their most surrendered since 2013. The results came after the Lions posted just 13 points in their season-opening loss to the Packers. Meanwhile, the Vikings – who earned a 27-24 win over the Bears in the season opener – managed just six points in a loss to the Falcons on Sunday night.
Put another way, the Bears defense has been horrendous in the 0-2 start. The secondary is in shambles without Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson. In going 23-of-28 for 334 yards and five touchdowns, Lions quarterback Jared Goff picked apart Bears cornerbacks Tyrique Stevenson, Nahshon Wright and Nick McCloud.
Bears defensive end Montez Sweat, who’s paid like a premier player on his four-year, $98.5-million contract, doesn't have a sack through two games. Chicago didn't have any sacks on a day that Goff thrived.
On offense, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams had an inconsistent performance. He was 19-of-30 for 207 yards and two touchdowns, but a glaring interception also hurt the Bears while the game was still close in the second quarter.
One of the most frustrating aspects of the day came 90 minutes prior to kickoff as the inactives list was released. Bears rookie offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo and rookie defensive tackle Shemar Turner, a pair of second-round picks, were both inactive. Offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie, a third-round pick in 2024, also didn't dress.
Meanwhile, rookie tight end Colston Loveland – the No. 10 overall pick in April – had zero receptions Sunday. Rookie receiver Luther Burden III, a second-round pick, had one catch for five yards.
Bears fourth-year general manager Ryan Poles has failed to bring in impact players through the draft, his stated goal amid the rebuilding process. He has also struggled to fill key voids in free agency in order to build a more competitive team.
Prior to each season, the NFL Network releases its top-100 players list. The Bears didn't have a single player on the list. There are no blue-chip players on this roster, and there aren’t enough good ones to achieve success.
The Bears’ best hope this season is to develop players properly under Johnson's watch, establish a culture and position themselves to have a better offseason.
But the goal of breaking through in 2025 appears to be dashed already.
Two starters go right back down
Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson and linebacker T.J. Edwards each made their season debut Sunday after missing the opening game with injuries. Neither player finished the game as it appears they reaggravated their previous injuries.
Johnson departed during the second quarter after a terrific diving pass break-up resulted in a groin injury. It was presumably the same groin injury that kept him out for the entirety of training camp, though the Bears didn't confirm that. Then in the third quarter, Edwards pulled up with a hamstring injury while chasing Lions receiver Jameson Williams. He suffered a hamstring injury during practice in late August.
It’s possible these injuries were bad fortune, but it's also fair to wonder if the Bears had two key players on the field a little too soon, putting them in position to reaggravate their injuries. Johnson and Edwards will likely miss more time now, and a defense that was picked apart is missing two of its best players.
Lions run up the score?
The Lions surpassed the 50-point mark in the middle in the fourth quarter when head coach Dan Campbell elected to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the Bears' 4-yard line. The Lions scored when Goff found star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown in the flat to the right after he went in motion from the left side.
Somehow, the Bears player nearest to St. Brown was defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo, who drifted into coverage while realizing nobody was guarding one of the game’s premier playmakers.
Bears head coach Ben Johnson didn't take offense to his old team going for it on fourth down while leading by 24 points. He didn’t perceive it as running up the score.
“What’s he supposed to do?” Johnson said of Campbell’s decision. "It's fourth-and-goal, what do you want him to do? Yeah, he could’ve kicked the field goal. They don’t kick field goals. They go for it there. So, he was doing what he was supposed to do. That’s what he does.”
Extra points
-- Of course Bears kicker Cairo Santos’ opening kickoff went out of bounds. What a tone-setter for the Bears.
-- The Bears’ offense produced an eight-play, 74-yard touchdown drive on their first possession of the game. It marked the second straight week the Bears scored a touchdown on their opening drive. That was the positive of the day for Chicago.
-- Stevenson probably shouldn’t be starting for the Bears, but there are no good alternatives. He’s instead their top cornerback for the time being.
-- The Bears failed to get a first down on back-to-back quarterback sneaks on third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 from their own 37-yard line early in the second quarter. They actually had a second-and-1 before that and couldn't pick up a single yard. That's unacceptable.
-- The Bears’ offense had multiple series with more than 30 yards to go for a first down.
-- The Lions using Johnson’s “Stumble Bum” trick play as a rehearsed celebration added further insult to the Bears' blowout loss.
-- The Bears got a bad break at the end of the first half when an officiating mistake stopped the clock and gave the Lions time to score a touchdown when they were out of timeouts, but let’s not act like it mattered with the way Chicago's defense played.
-- Matt Eberflus comes to town this Sunday.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.