CHICAGO – The injury situation wasn't good to start the day Sunday for the Detroit Lions and it got worse by the end of the day.
The Lions got the news Sunday morning they'd be without quarterback Matthew Stafford, who was deactivated after doctors and head coach Matt Patricia ruled that it wasn't safe for him to play with the back injury he was dealing with from a hit late in the game last week in Oakland.
The injury situation only got worse for the Lions throughout the course of their 20-13 loss to the Bears.
Starting right tackle Rick Wagner was down on the turf for a while in the second quarter and was eventually carted off the field to be evaluated for a concussion. He never returned to the game. Second-year tackle Tyrell Crosby took his place.
Running back Ty Johnson left the game in the first quarter to be evaluated for a concussion, and he too never returned to action. Quarterback Jeff Driskel ended up leading the Lions in rushing with 37 yards on five carries.
Defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson injured a thumb, but did come back and played in the second half.
The other reported injury for Detroit was defensive tackle Kevin Strong, who left the game due to a rib injury. He never returned.
Defensive tackle Mike Daniels, active for the first time since Week 3 because of a foot injury, left the game limping late in the fourth quarter. He's battled injuries to both feet the last two years.
Cornerback Darius Slay was limping late in the game, but kept playing.
"Obviously, the injury situation is always hard," head coach Matt Patricia said. "It's hard with the ones we had before the game, because then you get into the game and if there's anything that happens you're kind of really thin as far as what you can do in some of those situations."
SPECIAL TEAMS A PLUS
It was strength on strength Sunday with the Lions vs. Bears special teams. The Lions were top five in the NFL in both kickoff and punt coverage. The Bears were top five in kickoff and punt returns.
Patricia and Co. didn't shy away from kicking it to talented Bears return men Tarik Cohen and Cordarrelle Patterson.
Cohen had two returns for nine yards (4.5 average). He came in averaging 11.3 yards per punt return.
Patterson returned four kicks for 101 yards for an average of 25.3. He entered the game averaging more than 30.0 yards per return.
Punter Sam Martin dropped four of his six punts inside the 20-yard line.
All and all, not a bad job by Detroit's coverage units.
EXTRA POINTS
- 10 different Lions players caught a pass Sunday. Wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. led the way with five receptions for 77 yards.
- Detroit out-gained Chicago 357 to 226 in total yards. Detroit was 7-of-18 on third down to just 2-of-12 for the Bears. The one turnover and some untimely penalties ultimately hurt Detroit Sunday.
- Detroit's defense racked up five sacks in the loss by five different players. Defensive end Trey Flowers, safety Tavon Wilson, linebacker Jahlani Tavai, linebacker Devon Kennard and defensive tackle Mike Daniels all got to Trubisky in the contest.
