5 months ago
The Detroit Lions’ 2025 play comes to an extremity connected Sunday arsenic their disappointing nonaccomplishment past week to nan Minnesota Vikings trim disconnected hopes of making nan postseason for a 3rd consecutive season.
That leaves nan Lions (8-8) pinch 1 last matchup against a playoff-bound Chicago Bears squad (11-5) that doesn’t person excessively overmuch successful nan measurement of competitory stakes for Detroit.
But, this is simply a Dan Campbell squad and it’s difficult to ideate nan Lions not making a tally astatine trying to decorativeness pinch a winning grounds for a 4th consecutive play and sound disconnected erstwhile violative coordinator Ben Johnson for nan 2nd clip this season.
Here are people predictions for Detroit’s play finale against nan Bears from MLive’s hit writers:
Ben Raven
What other is location to opportunity astatine this point? These teams are trending successful other directions to extremity this season. Sure, nan Lions dropped 52 points connected Ben Johnson’s Bears backmost successful Week 2. But that discourtesy hasn’t been seen astir these parts successful a agelong time. And don’t deliberation Johnson has forgotten that hit down. The Lions are banged up and nan Bears are still playing for something, nan classical look for a dud of a finale to extremity a dud of a season.
Prediction: Bears 28, Lions 13
Kory Woods
On paper, a logical personification would prime nan Chicago Bears to triumph this game. Along pinch being nan existent NFC North champions, they are not nan aforesaid Bears squad nan Lions hosted and defeated successful Week 2. This Bears squad is much polished connected some sides of nan football. They besides person what Kelvin Sheppard calls a two-headed monster successful nan backfield of D’Andre Swift and rookie Kyle Monangai, a coagulated receiving core, a increasing Caleb Williams nether center, and Ben Johnson overseeing nan offense. Defensively, Bears coordinator Dennis Allen’s portion has made Chicago’s defense gritty, pinch a knack for creating turnovers.
But we’ve seen this book earlier successful 2022. A Lions squad pinch thing to suffer and thing to play for successful nan postseason put it each together for 1 crippled to decorativeness pinch pridefulness and a winning season. I deliberation history repeats itself successful Chicago. Throughout nan week, Lions players and coaches said astir nan value of finishing this play connected a precocious note. The cardinal will beryllium nan Lions’ expertise to extremity nan tally and create unit connected Williams. The discourtesy hasn’t looked bad successful caller weeks, nor has nan defense, and arsenic Campbell said, they are close; conscionable a fewer tweaks are needed. Give maine nan Lions to threat this losing streak.
Prediction: Lions 28, Bears 24
Jacob Richman
The Lions person made a wont of winning successful Week 18 complete nan past fewer years, sloppy of whether location are awesome stakes for them aliases not.
The large quality I’m seeing from year’s past is that this Lions squad undoubtedly fell short of expectations. Those rosters that sewage upset wins complete stronger opponents were underdogs beautiful overmuch each play agelong and sewage 1 past chance to beryllium they were building thing special.
At this point, nan halfway of nan roster has been to nan playoffs doubly and made nan NFC Championship game. It’s going to beryllium a spot harder to get up for this crippled for nan Lions, not to mention each nan injuries they’re dealing pinch and a Chicago squad that has a monolithic spot connected its enarthrosis from being handed its astir lopsided conclusion of nan play astatine nan hands of Detroit and coming disconnected a adjacent nonaccomplishment to nan San Francisco 49ers.
Chicago is poised to gain immoderate redemption here, it’s a batch tougher to spot nan Lions making it 5 consecutive Week 18 wins.
Prediction: Bears 31, Lions 21
Here are immoderate further predictions from nationalist media for nan Lions-Bears game:
CBS Sports
Pick: Bears
“The Bears are playing for seeding, while nan Lions are looking to picnic spots. The Lions haven’t played good down nan stretch, while nan Bears person connected offense. The Lions playing extracurricular person been a different squad successful caller years, but nan Chicago defense is not bully correct now. This is simply a shootout, pinch nan Bears taking it.”
ESPN
Pick: Bears (majority)
NFL.com
Pick: Bears (majority)
“I‘m judge Detroit would emotion thing much than to decorativeness nan run pinch a roadworthy triumph complete Ben Johnson. To do that, nan Lions can’t spend to move nan shot complete for illustration they did a week agone and they must get backmost to moving nan shot pinch Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery. Detroit ran complete nan Bears for 177 yards successful Week 2, but that area of nan discourtesy has been excessively inconsistent excessively often.
In fact, nan Lions are 8-1 this play erstwhile they unreserved for much than 100 yards and 0-7 erstwhile posting less than 100 unreserved yards. Getting backmost to nan tally crippled will thief Jared Goff debar nan Bears’ ballhawking defense, a boom-or-bust portion that has allowed 24.8 points per crippled (22nd successful nan NFL) and 357.3 full yards per crippled (28th) but leads nan convention pinch 22 interceptions and 32 takeaways. Chicago has won galore adjacent games acknowledgment to that portion and Caleb Williams‘ improved decision-making and expertise to lead his offense, sloppy of who’s successful aliases retired of nan lineup.
The Bears are nan amended squad correct now. There’s nary questioning that. But these Week 18 tilts tin get funky. Sunday is it for Detroit this season, while nan Bears will spell connected to play for thing bigger sloppy of this game’s outcome. I’m taking Dan Campbell’s squad successful a adjacent one." -- Brooke Cersosimo
The Arizona Republic
Pick: Bears
“The Lions really don’t person thing to play for aft being eliminated from nan NFL playoffs. It will show arsenic nan Bears participate nan postseason connected a precocious note.”
The Sporting News
Pick: Bears
“The Lions are successful threat of dipping into an each excessively acquainted spot of finishing a play beneath .500. The Bears are successful caller territory pinch winning nan NFC North for nan first clip successful 7 years, pinch Caleb Williams connected nan brink of being their first-ever 4,000-yard passer. Williams tin prime isolated nan Lions’ depleted defense while nan Bears unit immoderate cardinal turnovers of Jared Goff astatine location to compensate for giving up a “fifty burger” successful nan first matchup."
USA Today
Pick: Bears (majority)
“Dan Campbell is not going to fto Chicago beryllium nan squad that forces them into a sub-.500 season.”
NBC Sports (Pro Football Talk)
Pick: Bears (unanimous)
“Ben Johnson remembers Week 2. And if there’s nan slightest chance to return nan 52-21 favor, he will.”
Bleacher Reporter
Pick: Bears (majority)
“I want to prime Detroit here, but it’s very difficult to spot what we’ve seen from nan Lions discourtesy lately, and I don’t spot that getting amended successful nan acold Chicago weather. Jared Goff struggled mightily against Minnesota past week, and playing extracurricular successful Chicago this clip of nan twelvemonth is not nan measurement to remedy that. Bears triumph by a section goal, sending nan Lions retired connected a debased statement successful a disappointing season.”
Sports Illustrated
Pick: Bears (majority)
- Lions offseason checklist: Rebolstering nan O-line is clear-cut apical privilege
- Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown banged up, but expects to play successful Week 18
- Detroit Lions still missing All-Pro OT from believe up of finale
- Lions defense eyes beingness situation from Bears’ ‘two-headed monster’
- Despite clinching NFC North, nan Bears person a spot connected their enarthrosis for Lions rematch
