The Chicago Bears (5-6) are looking to extend their winning streak to two when they face off against the struggling Detroit Lions (3-7-1) on Thanksgiving.
The Bears are looking to complete the season sweep against the Lions, as they defeated Detroit 20-13 in their first meeting three weeks ago. But Chicago will have to do it shorthanded, as they have six players already ruled out for Thursday’s game.
Here are four bold predictions for the Bears’ Week 13 matchup:
1. Mitchell Trubisky replicates 3-TD performance vs. Lions
Mitchell Trubisky has historically played well against the Detroit Lions in his career. He has an eight to three touchdown to interception ratio with a 68% completion, a 102.0 passer rating and an average of 7.9 yards per attempt, all numbers that rank better than his career numbers.
Factor in the fact the Lions defense is playing at its worst, most recently losing to the Dwayne Haskins-led Redskins. Then there’s that fact that one of Trubisky’s best games this season came just three weeks ago against the Lions, where he tossed three touchdowns.
Considering the Lions defense hasn’t improved much since their last meeting — and the Bears offense is looking to build off their third quarter success — Trubisky could be in for his best game this season, complete with a repeat three-touchdown performance.
2. WR Anthony Miller will have 100 receiving yards
While Allen Robinson remains Trubisky’s most-trusted offensive weapon, there’s no denying that the chemistry between Trubisky and Anthony Miller has been flourishing over these past two weeks. Miller is coming off his best performance of the season last week against the Giants, where he had six catches for 78 yards.
Over the past two weeks, Miller has 12 catches for 131 yards, and he’s been targeted by Trubisky 20 times. Miller saw 30 targets in the first nine games combined.
Given Taylor Gabriel is dealing with a concussion that will sideline him for Thursday, look for Miller to get more attention on offense and for him and Trubisky to continue to utilize their connection against a bad Lions defense. This might very well be the week that Miller joins Robinson as the only Bears receiver this season to break the 100-yard mark.
3. Eddie Jackson gets first INT of season, a pick-six
It’s been 11 games and All-Pro safety Eddie Jackson still doesn’t have an interception this season. Meanwhile, his counterpart Ha Ha Clinton-Dix has two.
The Bears will either face Jeff Driskel for a second time or third-string quarterback David Blough. Driskel is coming off a three-interception performance against the Washington Redskins, and he threw an interception in the Bears’ last meeting with the Lions.
Last Thanksgiving, Jackson had a game-changing interception of Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, which effectively sealed the game for the Bears. Hopefully Thursday’s game won’t have to come down to the wire, but there’s no better way for Jackson to get his first pick of the year than on a familiar national stage.
4. Bears offense will score on their opening possession of the game
Now, this might be the boldest prediction of the week given how often the Bears have not been able to score on their first possession of the game. Of the 11 games they’ve played this season, they’ve scored on their opening possession just once this season — against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 4.
If the Bears can only pretend that the first quarter is actually the third quarter, where they’ve found success, perhaps they can finally score on their opening possession for the first time since September. And against a bad Lions defense, maybe this is the game where they break their streak.
