Bears 27, Lions 23: Matt Forte, Defense Propel Bears Comeback

The Bears nearly embarrassed themselves by losing at home, following a bye week, to the worst team in the NFL. An early lead wasn't enough, as the Lions scored compiled a 23 point second quarter. Alas, they scored zero points in the first, third, and fourth quarters combined.

There were two pivotal plays in the game. One swinging the game in favor of the Lions, and the other back to the Bears. Both plays involved Devin Hester.

1. After a Kevin Smith touchdown cut the Bears lead to 10-6 (botched extra point, which would prove costly), Hester coughed up the football on the ensuing kickoff. The Lions recovered, and Dan Orlovsky threw a 17 yard touchdown pass to Calvin "Megatron" Johnson. A 10-0 deficit became a 13-10 lead within 11 seconds. The Lions had seized the momentum rather rapidly.

2. The Bears were trailing 23-20, and had failed to gain a first down in their last three possessions. With 8:52 left on the clock, and the Lions being forced to punt, the offense needed a spark. Hester broke through the Lions punt coverage for a 20 yard return and was horse-collared on the play ... so they ended up with the ball on their own 46. A go-ahead Rex Grossman touchdown was the result.

Some other things that mattered:

- The Lions had eight possessions in the second half. They punted five times, turned it over twice, and ran out of time on the last. Before the final drive -- where the Bears played a soft pass coverage and allowed underneath catches due to the four point lead -- they accrued negative two yards on four fourth quarter possessions.

- Matt Forte sliced through the Lions defense with ease, compiling 126 rushing yards on 22 carries. He looked to get stronger and find more holes as the game wore on. Yes, the Lions run defense is brutal, but Forte looked like a savvy veteran the way he routinely maneuvered through the front seven.

- Calvin Johnson was targeted almost 20 times, and handed an ill-advised end-around (the Bears ends, Alex Brown and Adewale Ogunleye, are very disciplined players). It's obvious the Lions are going to try and do everything they can to get their top play-maker the ball from here on out.

- Kyle Orton left with a lower leg injury late in the first half. Grossman was serviceable enough to lead the Bears on their second half comeback. It was, however, mostly due to the defense, Matt Forte, and the run blocking. Rexy was only 9-19 passing for 58 yards. He did heave a TD, but also a signature interception on a batted pass. And yeah, the go-ahead one yard TD plunge as well.

- As I stated earlier, the botched extra point in the second quarter for the Lions was really costly. Had they converted, only a three point deficit would have awaited them on the final drive, which did end in field goal. Obviously, you don't know how the flow of the game would have changed. The Bears wouldn't have allowed the Lions to throw underneath at will on the final drive, but that may have allowed Johnson to slip through coverage for a deep TD and the win.

We'll never know. Bears win to take a one game lead in the division, and the Lions continue their run of futility.