In Week 15 of the NFL season, there will be two divisional duels from AFC West and NFC North on Saturday evening. The Kansas City Chiefs (7-6) will receive the Los Angeles Chargers (7-6) for what is arguably the most decisive battle of strength around the playoffs. Previously, the Detroit Lions (7-6) vs. the Chicago Bears (4-9) are trying to keep their chances of the postseason alive. Both games will be available live on DAZN from 10.30 pm.
Both the Bears and Lions celebrated a victory last week: Detroit won at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, while Chicago defeated the Cincinnati Bengals for their fourth win of the season – the third against an AFC North team.
Nevertheless, Chicago doesn’t have a word to say in the battle for playoff places. The situation is different with the Lions, who will have to win their three remaining games against the Bengals, the Green Bay Packers and the Bears. But even a record of 10-6 could not be enough for the postseason.
The big problem that runs like a thread through the season for the Lions is their weak run game. Only around 20 percent of their total yards are made on the ground, which is well below the league average of around 50 percent.
Although Lions use the run game below average (detroit runs 36 percent of the placements, with an average of 42 percent), Detroit ranks second to last with 3.3 yards per run, only the Arizona Cardinals are even more inefficient.
Also on the other side of the ball, the Michigan team has run-game problems, and lives up to its frowned upon nickname “Detroit Lie-Downs”. In each of the last eight games, Detroit allowed for a rush touchdown, the longest negative series since 2008. The next bad news is that the coming opponent from Illinois scored more Rush-yards against the Bengals last week than in any other game of the current season.
“We’ve hardly ever seen teams run better,” says head coach Jim Caldwell,”They block extremely well at the front, their backs run hard and they mix it well with their play action, leaving them out of balance for many teams.
In the DVOA ranking against the race, the Lions are ranked 28th, now a team with Tarik Cohen and Jordan Howard, a dynamic running back duo, is waiting for the Bears. Above all, the Lions are warned against the latter.
“We’ve always had trouble stopping Howard,” said Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin,”He’s always had good games against us and has a good overall overview.
But the Bears are also becoming more and more dangerous in the air, because especially the performances of rookie quarterback Mitchell Trubisky give hope. Against the Bengals he played the best game of his young NFL career (25/32,271 YDS, TD), but benefited from some injuries in Cincinnati’s Secondary.
All in all, however, Trubisky showed that he could get rid of the ball faster and better read his opponent’s defenses. His athleticism also allows him to lengthen plays, which should also work against the Lions’ weak pass rush. In view of the injury to Zach Miller and missing sizes in the Bears’ receiver corps, Trubisky is doing well.
The 23-year-old is particularly good at dealing with pressure situations. In third down situations, Trubisky has a register rating of 97.3, the fifth-best of all quarterbacks. He is the only passer-by who hasn’t thrown a single interception in Third Downs.
“You need to know what your opponent’s defenses will do in such situations,”said Trubisky, but he also wants to praise the performance of his colleagues:”When all ten men do their job, it makes it much easier for me. That’s why we at Third Downs are so effective.”
He plays very attentively and confidently,”Caldwell said of Trubisky,” In general, he makes few mistakes, no matter what the situation is.
Trubisky’s opponent Matt Stafford, however, will be playing another strong season. The best paid player in the NFL last fought with a bruise on his throwing hand, which he caught against the Ravens two weeks ago. However, these problems are likely to be overcome.
In addition to the receivers Golden Tate and Marvin Jones, Stafford increasingly used Tight End Eric Ebron, who set two season best performances against the Buccaneers with ten receptions for 94 yards.
Four weeks ago, Lions won their first match of the season with 27:24 from NFC North. Stafford controlled the Bears defense, completing 68 percent of his passports for 299 yards and two touchdowns.
Chicago’s kicker Connor Barth had a great opportunity to get the game into overtime three seconds before the end, but his 46 yard field goal attempt was clearly off the vertical. Meanwhile, Barth’s lost his job in the NFL.
Detroit Lions (7-6) – Chicago Bears (4-9) (Saturday, 22:30 Live on DAZN)
Page 1: Duel at NFC North, Detroit Lions – Chicago Bears
Page 2: Duel at AFC West, Kansas City Chiefs – Los Angeles Chargers