Chicago Bears: 5 Major takeaways from Thanksgiving win over Lions

Secondary came through late but needs to tighten up

The one unit that really struggled (at least early on) for the Chicago Bears was the secondary. Blough’s first NFL completion was a touchdown pass, beating Prince Amukamara. Then, on his second drive, he beat Amukamara again for 19 yards. He completed another pass for 29 yards then threw his second touchdown when Amukamara again got burned. Actually, he froze as two receivers passed by him and ended up covering no one.

In the second quarter, Blough burned Kyle Fuller for a 34-yard gain that got the Lions in position to hit a field goal. In the third quarter, he burned Buster Skrine for 13 yards and Fuller again for 12 yards. That drive also ended up in a field goal attempt made.

There were other occasions when the secondary had chances to get an interception but dropped the passes. Additionally, they committed a couple of big penalties that gave the Lions free yards and extended drives.

The unit did step up later in the game, though. The secondary executed the bend but don’t break defense. Blough completed 7 or 13 passes for 71 yards on the drive but Jackson ended that drive and the game with his interception. There was also a game-saving shoestring tackle made by Fuller when it looked like running back J.D. McKissic was on his way to scoring a touchdown.

This wasn’t a pretty game for the Bears’ secondary, but the players on that unit showed a lot of resiliency in continuing to battle and ultimately stepped up and made a big play when they needed and sealed the game.