Sunday, September 14, 2025

Post-Game Lions Links for Sunday 9-14-25

Articles:

NOTEBOOK: Goff, Lions' offense bounce back with 50+ points vs. Bears:  https://www.detroitlions.com/news/notebook-goff-lions-offense-bounce-back-with-50-points-vs-bears

FOUR DOWNS: St. Brown puts up 3-TD performance in Lions' win over Bears:  https://www.detroitlions.com/news/four-downs-st-brown-puts-up-3-td-performance-in-lions-win-over-bears

RECAP: Lions vs. Bears:  https://www.detroitlions.com/news/recap-lions-vs-bears-goff-stbrown-williams-gibbs

Lions far from perfect, but looking much better while leading Bears at halftime:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2025/09/lions-far-from-perfect-but-looking-much-better-while-leading-bears-at-halftime.html





Lions' Week 2 Injury Updates: Marcus Davenport, Brian Branch:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/news/lions-week-2-injury-updates-davenport-branch


Lions Teach Ben Johnson Lesson, Continue Dominance in 52-21 WR: https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/news/lions-teach-ben-johnson-lesson-blowout-bears









Five reasons the Lions bounced back and routed the Bears, 52-21:  https://lionslowdown.com/2025/09/14/five-reasons-the-lions-bounced-back-and-routed-the-bears-52-21/



Why refs let Detroit Lions run 1 more play before halftime for key touchdown vs. Bears:  https://www.clickondetroit.com/sports/2025/09/14/why-refs-let-detroit-lions-run-1-more-play-before-halftime-for-key-touchdown-vs-bears/

2025 NFL season, Week 2: What We Learned from Sunday's games (Kevin Patra's takeaways:  1.  Lions bounce back with demolition of Bears. Following last week’s dismal performance in Green Bay, Detroit came out with a purpose and urgency, steamrolling the Bears in the final three quarters, scoring 24 straight at one point. Given plenty of time this week, Jared Goff played splendidly, dicing up Chicago’s defensive to the tune of 334 yards and five touchdowns on an 82.1 completion rate for a 156.0 passer rating. From the first snap, Goff’s play-action was on point, and he looked comfortable against a struggling Bears defense. When Goff has time — which the middle of the offensive line provided this week — he can pick apart a secondary. The connection with Amon-Ra St. Brown (nine receptions for 115 yards and three touchdowns) was unguardable, especially in the red zone. This was the offense we’d come used to seeing in Detroit: Explosives for days, a run game gobbling up yards, and Goff carving up the middle of the field. By the time Jameson Williams pranced for a 44-yard touchdown in the third quarter, the party was on in Detroit. Locals can breathe a sigh of relief. The offseason of change didn’t completely alter everything. Sunday was the juiciest of 50-burgers against a division rival and former OC. What we really learned: Green Bay’s defense appears even better a week later.  2.  Bears offense sputters again. Ben Johnson might have wished he were standing on the other sideline once again. As we saw last week, Caleb Williams got off to a good start leading an eight-play, 79-yard TD drive. The QB had another good possession to end the first half, but there was far too much inconsistency. He missed targets and made ill-advised throws, including an off-balance heave that was 10 yards off the mark and picked off. Williams’ infancy in Johnson’s offense is glaring as he still struggles to make the quick, easy throws regularly. The Bears' offense turned the ball over twice and was stopped on fourth down another two times. Solid early protection devolved as the deficit yawned, with Williams getting sacked four times before sitting down in the fourth quarter of the blowout. Chicago not only fell to 0-2, but it did so in depressing fashion against division opponents. In two weeks, all the offseason optimism in the Windy City has blown into Lake Michigan.  3.  Lions defense makes game-altering plays. Kelvin Sheppard promised his defense would force turnovers in Week 2. It did just that. Brian Branch was all over the field Sunday, like a heat-seeking missile. The safety popped the ball loose from Bears running back D'Andre Swift for a first-half fumble. Branch finished with a sack, two tackles for loss, a pass defended, the forced fumble, and six tackles. Kerby Joseph added a diving interception. The turnovers were sandwiched around a turnover on downs when the defensive front stuffed Williams twice on sneaks. The Lions lacked pass rush early and still gave up chunk plays -- particularly to Rome Odunze -- but they made the big stops when the game was still in balance. With their ears pinned late, the pass rush finally showed up, including seven QB pressures and a sack from Aidan Hutchinson. Smothering a division opponent is a good sign in Sheppard’s first home game as a coordinator.  Next Gen Stats Insight for Lions-Bears (via NFL Pro): Jared Goff was at his best when using play-action, completing 12 of 14 attempts for 198 yards and two touchdowns. Goff was also 8 for 11 for 241 yards and two touchdowns on passes 10 or more yards downfield, the most yards he’s recorded on such passes since Week 16 of the 2022 (255).  NFL Research: Fifty-two points is tied for second most in a game for the Lions all time. Detroit scored 52 points in two games in 2024 with Ben Johnson as offensive coordinator (club record is 55-20 win over Chicago on Thanksgiving in 1997)):  https://www.nfl.com/news/2025-nfl-season-week-2-what-we-learned-from-sunday-s-games

NFL Week 2 Recap: Detroit Lions 52, Chicago Bears 21:  https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-week-2-recap-detroit-lions-52-chicago-bears-21-2025

NFL Week 2 overreactions: Browns to bench Joe Flacco? (Lions offense will be just fine without Ben Johnson
Overreaction or reality: Reality.  All one needs to do is look at the box score to see what the Lions did in the second game under new offensive coordinator John Morton. The Lions looked like the Lions the league has become accustomed to, racking up 52 points while totaling 511 yards and averaging 8.8 yards per play in a dominant victory over the Bears. Jared Goff had as many incompletions (five) as touchdown passes, while Amon-Ra St. Brown looked like his old self with three touchdowns. Jameson Williams also had a 44-yard touchdown, something that was typical in the Lions offense last year.  Perhaps the Lions just ran into a perfect storm with the Packers defense debuting Micah Parsons last week, but this was the Detroit team we've seen over the last few years. A sigh of relief in Detroit.):  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-week-2-scores-results-overreactions-cowboys-browns/







Epic Performance By Cowboys’ Kicker Highlights the Good, Bad and Ugly of NFL Week 2 (Good: Detroit’s offense is back.  Maybe the Lions were waiting for Ben Johnson to show up before they felt comfortable scoring points again. Whatever it was, it worked.  In a matchup between 0–1 teams at Ford Field, Detroit scorched their former offensive coordinator and the Bears, scoring 28 first-half points before ultimately winning 52–21. In that half, the Lions registered 274 yards of offense and 17 first downs, with Jared Goff throwing for 191 yards and two touchdowns.   Goff ended the day with 334 yards and five touchdowns, three of them going to Amon–Ra St. Brown. On the ground, the Lions were limited to 2.1 yards per carry last week in the loss at Green Bay but exploded for 5.9 YPC with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery accounting for 151 rushing yards and two scores. Detroit racked up 511 yards and 25 first downs, scoring 24 points on their five second-half drives.  Also noteworthy, the Lions got key plays early from the defense, even though the unit surrendered 339 yards and 21 points. All-Pro safety Kerby Joseph picked off Caleb Williams on a diving effort in the second quarter, leading to a score. Earlier, fellow star safety Brian Branch forced a D’Andre Swift fumble at Detroit’s 32-yard line, taking away a scoring opportunity.  All told, though, the day was about the offense getting back on track after being held to six points before a garbage-time touchdown in Week 1. If this is the Lions team we’ll be getting going forward, Detroit will be the contender most expected it to be in the summer.):  https://www.si.com/nfl/epic-performance-cowboys-kicker-highlights-good-bad-ugly-nfl-week-2

Lions Celebrate Brutal Caleb Williams Interception With Dig at Ben Johnson:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions-celebrate-brutal-caleb-williams-interception-with-dig-at-ben-johnson

Lions Fans Boo Ben Johnson in Return to Ford Field as Bears Head Coach:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions-fans-boo-ben-johnson-in-return-to-ford-field

Questions off every NFL Week 2 game: Do the Patriots have kicker trouble? How good is the Packers defense? (Detroit 52, Chicago 21 - Lions:  Is Sunday's performance what we can expect to see from the Lions offense this season? After a lackluster effort at Green Bay, Detroit's offense responded in a major way to quiet any concerns -- at least for now -- lingering about how they would adapt to new offensive coordinator John Morton. Wide receivers Jameson Williams and Amon-Ra St. Brown both produced 100-yard receiving yards in the same game for the second time of their careers, as this offense looked like the unit many expected coming off last year's 15-2 season.  Trend to watch: Detroit has won 16 straight regular season games when leading at halftime, which is the longest active streak in the NFL, per ESPN Research. Against the Bears, the Lions jumped out to a 28-14 lead at halftime as St. Brown ended the first quarter with a career-best 82 receiving yards on three receptions. He would finish with nine receptions for 115 receiving yards and three touchdowns. -- Eric Woodyard.  Next game: at Ravens (Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET)):  https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46209485/nfl-week-2-2025-season-questions-takeaways-lessons-stats-recap-every-game

Bears-Lions NFL Week 2 highlights: Jameson Williams' long TD punctuates big day for offense:  https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46257633/bears-lions-nfl-week-2-highlights-touchdowns-plays

Lions Are Just Fine Without Ben Johnson, and What Else We're Learning in Week 2 (Bears: Forget the offense, what's up with this Chicago defense?  We knew in May that Chicago was getting two difficult divisional games to start the season, but the outcomes have been startling. First, the Bears allowed three touchdowns in the fourth quarter against the Vikings to blow a double-digit lead, and now they give up at least 10 points in every quarter of a 42-21 loss to the Lions. Detroit averaged 8.8 yards per play over an entire game.  Chicago’s next two games should be more winnable, hosting the Cowboys and playing at the Raiders. But seeing the Lions go 6-for-7 in the red zone says a lot about how easy this game was for Detroit, and that’s concerning for Dennis Allen and his defense.   Lions: Detroit has Ben waiting for this one.  Do you think Detroit was motivated to show it could still put up points without Ben Johnson calling plays? Their old OC came back to Detroit with the Bears, and the Lions went off – 52 points and more than 500 yards of total offense. Big game for new Lions OC John Morton, who got five touchdown passes and 334 yards from Jared Goff in a cakewalk of a win. Goff had as many touchdowns as incompletions midway through the fourth quarter.  It’s the first career three-touchdown game for receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who’d had two in a game three times. If you were worried about Detroit without Johnson or without All-Pro center Frank Ragnow, who retired, this was a "hey, we’re still here" statement after a lackluster loss in the opener against the Packers. — Greg Auman):  https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/what-were-learned-week-2-eagles-chiefs-giants-cowboys-seahawks-steelers

NFL Winners and Losers: Cowboys somehow pull out a win despite defense struggling badly (WINNERS - Lions offense: As it turns out, the Green Bay Packers defense might just be really good.  The Lions struggled badly in Week 1 to get any yards and didn't score a touchdown until a meaningless one in the final minute. When Detroit wasn't playing Green Bay, the offense looked a lot like it did last season.  Jared Goff had a big day and the Lions cruised to an easy 52-21 win over the Chicago Bears. Goff had 334 yards and five touchdowns, including three to Amon-Ra St. Brown. The Lions had 511 yards and put up 52 points against a Bears defense that played well through three quarters in Week 1.  The Lions didn't look good in the opener and there was a lot of concern about them going forward. There was no need to panic.):  https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/nfl-winners-and-losers-cowboys-somehow-pull-out-a-win-despite-defense-struggling-badly-204638102.html



Goff throws 5 TDs, 3 to St. Brown, and Lions bounce back with 52-21 win over Ben Johnson-led Bears:  https://apnews.com/article/lions-bears-score-2d14ad984e41cad4e196c83d3531593f

The Detroit Lions’ Offensive Drought Is Officially Over — It Lasted Exactly One Week:  https://athlonsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-offense-jared-goff-amon-ra-st-brown-jameson-williams-isaac-teslaa


Another brutal stat shows Caleb Williams still searching for NFL footing:  https://www.thebiglead.com/another-brutal-stat-shows-caleb-williams-still-searching-for-nfl-footing

Grades:

CBS (Lions Grade - A+:  Embarrassed by the rival Packers in Week 1, the Lions stormed back into peak form in front of Motor City faithful. Afforded a clean pocket, Jared Goff picked Chicago apart from start to finish, spreading five touchdown throws to Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and backup tight end Brock Wright. Throw in another 151 yards from the Jahmyr Gibbs-David Montgomery duo, and the all-star attack is officially back):  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-week-2-grades-scores-results-highlights-eagles-chiefs-lions-steelers/

Video:













Jameson Williams' explosive plays from 108-yard game vs. Bears | Week 2:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/williams-explosive-plays-from-108-yard-game-vs-bears-week-2

Jared Goff's best throws from 5-TD game vs. Bears | Week 2:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/jared-goff-s-best-throws-from-5-td-game-vs-bears-week-2

Amon-Ra St. Brown's best plays from 3-TD game vs. Bears | Week 2:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/st-brown-s-best-plays-from-3-td-game-vs-bears-week-2

HIGHLIGHT: 44-yard TD launch! Goff finds Williams for the score:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-44-yard-td-launch-goff-finds-williams-for-the-score

HIGHLIGHT: Goff tosses fifth TD of game as St. Brown scores third:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-goff-tosses-fifth-td-of-game-as-st-brown-scores-third

Jared Goff tosses fourth TD pass of game, second to St. Brown, for 8-yard score:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-goff-finds-st-brown-for-8-yard-td-x7762


Lions execute end of first half perfection with TD from Goff to St. Brown:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-lions-execute-end-of-first-half-perfection-with-td-from-goff-to-st-brown

Jahmyr Gibbs' first TD of 2025 caps Lions' opening drive vs. Bears:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-gibbs-caps-lions-opening-drive-with-6-yard-td-run

David Montgomery scores 1-yard TD run against former team:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-montgomery-punches-it-in-for-a-lions-td

Can't-Miss Play: 64-yard reception! Jameson Williams takes short catch a long way vs. Bears:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-goff-hits-williams-for-a-64-yard-gain

HIGHLIGHT: TeSlaa does it again! WR's second career catch is another one-hander:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-teslaa-does-it-again-wr-s-second-career-catch-is-another-one-hander

Jahmyr Gibbs sprints for 26-yard gain vs. Bears:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/jahmyr-gibbs-sprints-for-26-yard-gain-vs-bears

David Montgomery drags Bears defenders for 13-yard gain:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/david-montgomery-drags-bears-defenders-for-13-yard-gain

Jahmyr Gibbs hits turbo on 42-yard run vs. Bears:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/jahmyr-gibbs-hits-turbo-on-42-yard-run-vs-bears

David Montgomery races along sideline for 18-yard run:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/david-montgomery-races-along-sideline-for-18-yard-run

Amon-Ra St. Brown fights toward goal line with 32-yard gain from Goff:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-st-brown-takes-goff-s-pass-32-yards-to-the-1

Amon-Ra St. Brown scoops up pass from Goff for 16-yard gain:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/amon-ra-st-brown-scoops-up-pass-from-goff-for-16-yard-gain

Goff's 34-yard connection with St. Brown gets Lions into Bears territory quickly:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-goff-s-34-yard-connection-with-st-brown-gets-lions-into-bears-territory-quickly

Safety blitz nets Brian Branch's sack vs. Caleb Williams:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/safety-blitz-nets-brian-branch-s-sack-vs-caleb-williams


Al-Quadin Muhammad uses bull rush to sack Caleb Williams:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/al-quadin-muhammad-uses-bull-rush-to-sack-caleb-williams

Tyleik Williams thwarts Bears fourth down pass with batted pass:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/tyleik-williams-thwarts-bears-fourth-down-pass-with-batted-pass

Lions deny Bears on fourth down QB sneak:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/lions-deny-bears-on-fourth-down-qb-sneak

Marcus Davenport brings down Caleb Williams for first sack of game:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/marcus-davenport-brings-down-caleb-williams-for-first-sack-of-game

Can't-Miss Play: Kerby Joesph goes parallel to ground on diving INT vs. Caleb Williams:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-hutchinson-pressure-leads-to-diving-joseph-int

Brian Branch forces fumble against D'Andre Swift for first turnover of game:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-branch-forces-fumble-campbell-recovers

Jared Goff, Dan Campbell talk about trouncing of Chicago Bears in week 2:  https://www.fox2detroit.com/video/1707518
Posted by LionsFan at 8:05 PM

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