The Bears only scored because of lucky breaks. You have to take that into account, when you assess how the teams played. The Lions ran the ball whenever they wanted. They had control of that game.



No. If not for two extremely lucky breaks, the Bears probably don't even score. Put down the blue and orange Kool-Aid.

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I agree that the Bears had many things go their way, but in no way did the Lions have "control of the game." 6 trips to the red zone and two TD is not going to get it done next week or in the playoffs.

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Obviously, Stafford can't throw those picks in a playoff game, but the Bears were very lucky this game wasn't 41-0. The Lions ran it anytime they wanted. That is controlling the game.

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yes the Lions could have blown the game wide open, but you could just as easily say the Lions were lucky to get out of Chicago with a win. Both statements would be correct IMO.

Rushing for 138 yards or not, If the Lions play like they did yesterday, they probably won't beat Green Bay and will also probably lose in the first round of the playoffs.

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Beating GB and dominating the Bears are two different things. I didn't say that I expect the Lions to demolish the NFC after what I saw yesterday. I said they thoroughly out played the Bears, which they did.

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Really? The Bears looked good?
Scoring only 14, the looked "good"?
If the Bears Points Per Game was a "good" 14, how many games do you think they'd win?

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The Lions were fortunate to win yesterday, Chus. They did almost everything they could to give that game away.

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And thus, losing to that team, the Bears didn't look "good".

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Forget the Stafford pics, and the Ross punt muff. Just take into consideration the horrible roughing the punter penalty, and the no call on P.I. in the end zone. That makes the game 27-7, despite three turnovers.

As it is, they won on the road by a touchdown. I guess New England should just fold up their tents after squeaking one out on the road over the awful Jets. Buffalo and Baltimore were fighting for the playoffs, and they both lost on the road to lesser teams. This is life in the NFL. You should know that.

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Well, Jeffery was held on a breakaway TD pass with no call. Consideration could be given to that also.

Trestman's job might be secure if that guy doesn't hold Jeffery on that play.

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Absolutely. I said as much in the chat room. Holding is five yards, and a first down. They still would have to go 30 yards or so to score. If their red zone attmepts in the first quarter were any indication of things to come, they were looking at a field goal attempt at best. The Bears only had two long drives all day, and one was continued by a terrible roughing call. The Lions moved down the field all day long.

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The ball was in the air. That would have been a spot foul at about the 5.

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I know you are a Lions fan, Chus, but there is no way you can tell me the Lions dominated or controlled the game. They won by 6 points, and the Bears had a chance to drive the field and win the game at the end.

The Lions are not going to win many games with the QB going for 0 TD and 2 INT, a muffed punt, a roughing the punter penalty extended the drive, and getting a FG blocked. Fact is they were lucky to be playing such a bad Bears team and they were able to escape with a win.

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Slay grabbed him at about the 20, or so. I don't share your confidence that they would have been able to put the ball in the end zone.

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Sure I can. I already laid out why. Without that roughing penalty, the Bears barely get to 200 yards. The Lions dictated tempo on offense. They ran it, and ran it successfully, any time they wanted. Even Reggie Bush made some plays. 5.3 YPC is getting it done.



Again, you are talking about other teams/games. Of course, they won't beat GB with three turnovers. I am specifically talking about this game, and how the Lions imposed their will. You and jimmypasta are on an island here.

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Still holding on to this.


They play down to their competition a bit, dont they?

Sometimes. They aren't a complete team, by any stretch. If the defense continues to be solid, and Stafford doesn't turn the ball over, then they have a chance.

The Pats were playing for a #1 seed yesterday, and almost lost to the Jets. Nobody goes through a 16 game schedule, and throttles every opponent.

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Well, eventually the offense is going to have to win some games for them. We'll see.

Their offense hasn't been as bad as portrayed. Those turnovers were brutal yesterday, but they moved the ball at will. They only punted once. How many missed field goals did they have early in the year? Stafford still has 4000 yards, despite having CJ out, or as a decoy for five games. Stafford has led them to game winning drives in five games, so the offense has stepped up when it has had to.

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This years Lions team & personnel reminds me of the Bears circa 2006. Great defense, mediocre offense, pudgy average QB, similar coaching style.

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Chus you have talked about the Pats game twice already. I didn't watch that game, but did the Pats shoot themselves in the foot as many times as the Lions did yesterday?

Detroit didn't impose their will on anybody yesterday. New Orleans, Dallas, Green Bay, New England...THEY imposed their will on the Bears. The Lions did so on Thanksgiving, but not yesterday.

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I'm trying to illustrate the point that it's tough to go on the road, especially against a divisional opponent, who has been eliminated and wants to play spoiler. Green Bay didn't put the Bucs away until late. Baltimore and Buffalo both laid eggs on the road against inferior opponents.



We must have been watching different games. The Lions, who are usually a poor running team, got 5.3 yards per carry. They wanted to run the ball, and the Bears couldn't stop them. That is imposing your will.

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They won by 6. All of the mistakes the Lions made (2 red zone interceptions, getting a FG blocked, muffed punt, roughing punter penalty) prevents you from being able to impose your will on the opposition regardless of how many rushing yards a team got.

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Blown calls and a muffed punt have nothing to do with imposing your will. Those are called bad breaks. Running the ball successfully all day is imposing your will. The Lions average 87 yards per game. Yesterday, they got 138 yards, 5.3 per attempt. They wanted to run, and they did. Imposing. Your. Will.

The Bears want to run the ball, but can't, so they throw all day. Not. Imposing. Your. Will.

This isn't a difficult concept to grasp.

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It seems to be difficult for you.

The Lions ran the ball well. I never said anything to the contrary.

Stupid penalties and a muffed punt are not "bad breaks." Its sloppy football. Its impossible to 'impose your will' and play a game as sloppy as the Lions did yesterday. Thats pretty much the end of it for me.

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I was pretty clear. I was talking about the awful roughing the punter penalty, and the awful no call on Mundy, who interfered with Johnson in the end zone. The Lions forced the Bears to punt. A bad call by the refs kept the drive alive, eventually resulting in a TD. That's a bad break. After the no call on Mundy, the Lions had a field goal blocked. From 1st and goal on the 1 yd line, to Bears ball. Another bad break.

This would be a more productive discussion if you were responding to the things that I actually said.

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Raiola suspended 1 game

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/12067 ... e-game-pay

Good. That guy is a piece of shit, and has been doing this kind of stuff around the league for years.

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Anybody heard anything about the DE that speared Clasuen in the head while he was sliding?
That guy should get suspended too.

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Anybody remember who the Packers starting QB was the last time the Lions won in Green Bay?

-George HW Bush was in office
-Mikhail Gorbachev still led the Soviet Union
-The world wide web was not publicly available
-OJ was still considered to be a good guy

Oddly, it was only 5 QB's ago, but I honestly don't remember...Mike Tomczak started @ QB (December 15, 1991).

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Every violent collision isn't a cheap shot. Just because your QB got blown the fuck up, doesn't mean it was a cheap shot.

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