Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions: Matchups,

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When the Bears have the ball
RB Matt Forte vs. LB Larry Foote

With his instinct and ability to take on linemen and get off blocks, Foote has been one of the pleasant surprises for the Lions' defense. He was made to stop the run between the tackles. Forte has improved over the last three games but still has not hit his stride. He needs to break away for a couple of long runs to kick-start the Bears' running game, but it won't be easy to do with Foote in his way.

QB Jay Cutler vs. FS Louis Delmas

Cutler has to relish the opportunity to go up against a rookie free safety, but this isn't just any rookie free safety. Delmas was almost universally rated as the best safety in the draft last April, and he showed why by winning the defensive rookie of the month award for September. Delmas has not been spectacular, but he has been consistent. Look for Cutler to try to get Delmas out of position by looking one way and throwing another or pump-faking.

When the Lions have the ball
WR Calvin Johnson vs. CB Charles Tillman

Save for his failed strip attempt against Seahawks running back Julius Jones, Tillman has been solid and shown no limitations from offseason back and shoulder surgeries. He stood his ground against Donald Driver, Santonio Holmes and T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Johnson, however, will be Tillman's toughest challenge yet. Johnson's size (6-5, 236) and speed separate him from the rest, although double teams have helped limit him to a pedestrian 13 catches for 190 yards and one touchdown.

Offensive linemen Daniel Loper, Dominic Raiola and Stephen Peterman vs. DT Tommie Harris

Maybe Harris hasn't been too noticeable so far this season, but the Lions won't lose track of him. Harris has at least one sack in each of his last four games against Detroit. Expect the entire Bears defensive line, including Harris, to play with a little extra juice for line coach Rod Marinelli, who faces the team that fired him. The Lions have surrendered five sacks, the least among NFC North teams.

 

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Young Chicago Bears linebackers have big shoes to fill


This is the team of Bill George and Dick Butkus. Of Mike Singletary and Brian Urlacher. Of Doug Buffone and Otis Wilson. Of Wilber Marshall and Lance Briggs.

Great linebackers are part of the historic fabric of Chicago, like the wind, the water and the stockyards.

So if the Bears should trot out a starting linebacker crew Sunday of Nick Roach, Jamar Williams and Darrell McClover because of injuries to Urlacher (injured reserve), Pisa Tinoisamoa (doubtful on the injury report), Hunter Hillenmeyer (doubtful) and Briggs (questionable), they will be playing without a star linebacker and going against tradition.

Then again, those new guys might surprise us. One of them might even be the next Briggs.

Comprehend the trend If you must throw a frozen pizza in the microwave during the Lions-Bears game, do not do it when the Bears have a second down.

And if you insist on making a beer run, for the love of Pete do not do it during the fourth quarter.

If you miss a second down or a fourth-quarter play, you may miss Jay Cutler at his best. Or so the trend suggests.

On second downs this season, Cutler has had his best passer rating (112.3) and completion percentage (77.8) of any down, according to Stats, Inc.

The fourth quarter has been Cutler time, as he has a 114.3 passer rating and a 78.3 completion percentage while averaging 8.83 yards per attempt. Compare that with his first quarter numbers: 31.2 passer rating, 52.4 completion percentage and 6 yards per attempt.

What's interesting is neither phenomenon is new for Cutler. Last season as a Bronco, his highest passer rating (93.8) also was on second down. And when his quarter-by-quarter performance was broken down, he had his highest passer rating (94.2), most touchdown passes (11) and most pass plays of 25 yards or more (nine) in the fourth quarter.

Front office chess Last week a rumor made the rounds that former Colts wide receiver Marvin Harrison was at Halas Hall. Finally, the Bears had come to their senses and were looking to add a veteran receiver, right?

Uh, wrong.

The Bears never were interested in Harrison. They aren't interested in him now. And they probably wouldn't be even if they had an injury at the position.

It really isn't about Harrison as much as it is organizational philosophy. They are committed to developing the young players they have, and they know if they brought in Harrison it would mean elevating him ahead of some of the more inexperienced receivers.

Last year the Bears brought in two older wide receivers in Marty Booker and Brandon Lloyd. It was a mistake. The old guys took away practice reps and playing time from Earl Bennett and Brandon Rideau. Booker and Lloyd never made an impact, and the young players lost the chance to develop.

So even if the Bears need a wide receiver at some point this season (they don't right now), they likely would not go after a short-term solution like Harrison. They would go after another young player who could fall in line with the others, someone like Rideau, or maybe even Matt Jones, a player who still could develop.

The Bears also signed a young linebacker this week in McClover instead of veteran Derrick Brooks.

The reasoning? McClover is a very good special teams player. The Bears need a linebacker to play special teams this week because two linebackers who previously were core special teamers -- Roach and Williams -- have been promoted to the starting lineup.

The other benefit of signing McClover is he knows the defensive playbook, having been with the team earlier this season and last year. There is a chance he will be called on to play defense Sunday, or maybe even start in the unlikely event Briggs can't play.

To create a spot for McClover, the Bears had to release cornerback DeAngelo Smith -- but it's likely we have not seen the last of him in a Bears uniform.

Numbers games You knew the Bears were small as NFL teams go. But did you know they were the lightest team in the NFC, according to a study of opening day rosters? With an average weight of 242.49 pounds, the Bears also were the third lightest team in the NFL behind the Colts and Bills.

Given their scheme, it figures the Bears would be lighter than the norm on the defensive line, and they are. The Bears average 258 pounds per defensive end, compared with the league average of 280. The average Bears defensive tackle weighs 296; the league average is 306.

But the Bears are surprisingly light at some other positions too.

They fall below the league average at running back (215 pounds to 225), wide receiver (195 to 201), guard (310 to 315), center (292 to 305) and linebacker (239 to 243).

Compared with their opening day roster from one year ago, the Bears are a lighter team by 177 pounds -- an average of 3.34 pounds per man.

They moved by more than three pounds at three positions. At quarterback, 233-pound Jay Cutler took the place of 216-pound Kyle Orton and 217-pound Rex Grossman, moving the average up 10 pounds. The offensive tackles went up an average of eight pounds, mostly because of the acquisition of 325-pound Orlando Pace.

And the defensive tackles dropped seven pounds -- thanks to a 27-pound weight loss by Israel Idonije.

 

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ESPN's John Clayton reports that RB Kevin Smith will start Sunday against Chicago.
Nothing is for sure yet, but we believe Clayton. Smith has been taking part in pre-game warmups without any sort of padding on his injured shoulder, and looked fine.