Gameday at Chicago: O Come, O Come Emmanuel

[chemiclord]

Mahogany was very good, especially considering it was his first start.

[edindetroit]

Does anyone know what the moldy bread is referring to?

FB_IMG_1734920645795.jpg

[chemiclord]

It was a reference to something Coach Campbell said after the loss to Buffalo. I've already forgotten the context.

[whatever_gong82]

Here's a good news article about a Lions fan saving someone at the Bears game today:

Lions saw a real hero on sidelines as Detroit fan saved a life during pre-game workouts

Jeff Seidel
Detroit Free Press


CHICAGO — Before the Detroit Lions beat the Chicago Bears on Sunday in Soldier Field, something magical happened on the sideline.

“This is the season of miracles,” said Ben Roth, a longtime Lions fan, who happens to be a paramedic from Frisco, Texas.


Who just happened to be at the Lions game Sunday.

Who just happened to get some special field passes to go down on the sideline — I mean, he wasn't even supposed to be there, so close to the players.

But he just happened to be in precisely the right spot, at the right time, to save somebody’s life.


“Miracles,” Roth said, his voice trailing off.

Indeed.

But I’ll get to that in a second.


Because it’s important to set the scene.

How Roth ended up on the sideline is what truly makes this so special. All the tiny things that added up to this moment, like a pebble hitting a lake, all those ripples coming together at the perfect time.


From Roth's love of Barry Sanders to seeing a familiar sweatshirt in the stands to having a chance meeting with a guy with a special field pass to, well, having the foresight to scream for an AED.


Rooting for Barry Sanders

It all goes back to Barry Sanders.

“I've been a Lions fan for 35 years,” Roth said. “It started when I saw Barry Sanders play when I was 6 years old. I said, 'whatever team he gets drafted by will be my favorite team.’”


And that’s how a guy from Frisco, Texas — somebody who works as a firefighter and paramedic in Plano — ended up a Lions season ticket holder.

“We usually make it to four to five games a year as a family," he said, "and I'll get one or two by myself."



On Sunday, Roth took Isadora, his 6-year-old daughter, to the game against the Bears and they were sitting in club seats. “As close as you can be without actually being on the field,” he said.

That’s when things started to come together in the strangest of ways.

Roth noticed somebody wearing a North Texas shirt.


How strange? What are the chances of seeing that at a Bears game?

“Because my wife is the head swimming and diving coach for the University of North Texas,” Roth said. “I said, ‘Hey, can I take a picture with your son? My wife's the head coach at that college.'"


“And he said, 'Yeah, no problem.’”

So, they took a picture, and they started talking.


“He said, ‘Hey, we have two field passes,'" Roth said. "'My wife got sick yesterday, so if you want to come down with us? We want to get the tickets to a girl dad.'"

Well, Roth is certainly qualified as a girl dad. This was the second time he's taken his daughter to a Lions game.


“I so appreciated it,” Roth said. “Usually, my wife comes, but she's had enough cold weather games in her lifetime that she's like, 'You guys go.'”

So, they used those special passes to go down on the field about an hour before the game.


A man collapses

Down on the field, a man collapsed about 12 feet away from Roth.

“All I heard was somebody say that somebody just passed out,” Roth said. “So I turned and went to work and started helping.”


Let me just pause here to point out something important: You wanna talk about heroes? You wanna talk about people who have something special inside? Here is a guy who was at a Lions game, on a cold day in Chicago, down on the sideline with his daughter, and he sprang into action. Because that's what people like this do.


Yes, that’s hero stuff.

At first, they thought the man was having a seizure.


But Roth has been a paramedic for 17 years and he’s seen this before.

“A lot of times before you have a heart attack, you have what looks like a seizure,” he said.


So, Roth did an incredibly smart thing.

He called for an AED (automated external defibrillator) machine before the man's heart stopped.


“Hey, get ready to do CPR,” Roth said. “And they're like, ‘he has pulse.’”

“I was like, ‘he’s about to lose it.’”


Sure enough, the man’s heart stopped beating.


Roth started compressions on the man’s chest, doing CPR, and then stepped back to take charge.

“I did a couple compressions, but I knew that we needed to do some more higher end medical stuff,” Roth said. “CPR is one of those things that a lot of people can do with the right training.


"So we asked the Troopers to do that and then I asked another gentleman to keep track of the time for me, because I didn't know when we were going to get somebody over there.”


The Bears rushed over an AED machine in about 30 or 40 seconds, according to Roth.

“We placed the pads on his chest,” Roth said. “The AED identified that he was in a rhythm and needed to be shocked.”


Roth told everybody to back up.

“It can go through the body to another person,” he said.


Roth pushed the button and shocked the man’s heart.

He was brought back thanks to an entire team effort that included the Bears and the Illinois State Troopers.


“We continued CPR for a little bit more, just to make sure that it wasn't a 'fake get back,'” he said. “Sometimes a person will come back and they'll immediately go back into arrest.”


But the man did come back.


“He came to and I was able to talk to him a little bit,” Roth said.




The last Roth saw, the man was being carted off the field.

“He was talking to me,” Roth said. “Told me his name, his birthday, about everything.”

And Roth went back to the stands.


“The guy I was sitting with said, ‘Hey, Dan Campbell, walked by while you were doing all that stuff,’” Roth said.

Wild, right?

All the things that came together in that moment?


“It's an adrenaline rush from the aspect of doing my passion, which is helping people,” Roth said. “But it was a little bit scary, because as a firefighter and a paramedic, you get notified for a call and you have your coworkers with you. Your brothers, your sisters, you have them with you.

"You have the equipment, you have an idea what you're going to do and that it happened right in front of me. So I went back to the very basics and just did CPR. Then once the equipment got there, I felt a lot more comfortable.”




“This is why I became a firefighter,” he continued. “I'm just happy that there was an AED around. I'm happy the Bears staff was able to get there as quick as they did. I was happy I was in the right place. Hopefully he gets to celebrate Christmas with his family.”


All in all, it was a pretty amazing day for Roth. The Lions won. He got to spend time with his daughter. Oh, and he saved a life.

“I wanted the Lions to win,” he said, “but this is a far bigger win.”

A true season of miracles.


Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on X @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.

[froot loops]

Campbell for 12.weeks they had been eating filet mignon and last week they were served molded bread. Find the interview and then I guarantee you run through a wall.

[-Deborah-]

[whatever_gong82]

Dan Campbell's victory speech today:

[-Deborah-]

[whatever_gong82]

More Jamo:

[whatever_gong82]

Detroit Lions grades: Jahmyr Gibbs shoulders larger load in rout of Bears

Richard Silva
The Detroit News


Chicago — Richard Silva grades the Detroit Lions in their 34-17 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Quarterback

The only real hiccup by Jared Goff came in the first quarter, when he nearly threw a pick-6 to cornerback Tyrique Stevenson on what was a designed screen to tight end Sam LaPorta. Other than that, he was impressive and efficient and allowed his play-makers to rack up 205 yards after the catch. His best throw came on a heave to Jameson Williams, as he loaded up and fired a ball that traveled about 55 yards in the air. Grade: A


Running backs

Jahmyr Gibbs was always going to have to shoulder more responsibility with David Montgomery out, but he did so in an especially big way. Gibbs finished with 154 total yards and a touchdown on 27 touches, with the majority of that production coming in the first half. Gibbs flashed his speed time and time again, utilizing his jump-cuts to bounce outside of defenders and beat them to the edge. Credit him also for hustling to block on a third-down conversion by Amon-Ra St. Brown. Craig Reynolds chipped in a couple of useful carries, and Sione Vaki had a 12-yard catch just before halftime that helped give his team a chance at a field goal. Grade: A


Wide receivers/tight ends

After dropping a deep pass against the Buffalo Bills last week — it would've been negated due to a penalty, but it was a drop nonetheless — Williams had sure hands when hauling in an 82-yard touchdown in the second quarter Sunday. He finished with a game-high (and career-high) 143 receiving yards and was complemented by St. Brown, who impressively picked up 18 yards on a third-and-17 in the second half, and Sam LaPorta, who found the end zone on a neat trick play. Grade: A

Offensive line

Detroit's offensive line played below its own standard versus the Bills, as the Lions could never get their run game going and Goff was under pressure on 35.9% of his dropbacks. The opposite was true in Chicago, with the Lions averaging 4.6 yards per carry and Goff being sacked just once (he was hit three times). Also important to highlight is rookie Christian Mahogany, who made his first start in place of the injured Graham Glasgow at left guard. We'll see what the coaching staff thinks of Mahogany after reviewing the film, but he was far from a liability (aside from a late false start) on first watch. Grade: A-

Defensive line

The pass rush didn't get home as much as you'd like against a team that allows as many sacks as the Bears do — rookie quarterback Caleb Williams has been brought down nearly 60 times this season — but Al-Quadin Muhammad came up with a big one in the fourth quarter to push Chicago out of range for a field-goal attempt. Other linemen getting a hit off on Williams were Levi Onwuzurike and Josh Paschal, with the latter also recovering a fumble on Chicago's second drive of the game. The Bears, after falling behind in a hurry, had to abandon the run. Even still, their running backs only mustered 2.3 yards per carry. Grade: B

Linebackers

To put it kindly, last week's performance from the linebackers was not very good. Buffalo's Ty Johnson had a career day, and his biggest chunk plays came when a linebacker was defending him. There were no splash plays made by the LBs against Chicago, but there weren't any negative reps that stuck out, either. In fact, Mitchell Agude (he often lines up as a defensive end but is listed as an outside linebacker), teamed up with Amik Robertson and Brian Branch to force a fumble. Grade: B

Secondary

It was a little bit of a feast or famine for Terrion Arnold, who is being forced to step up into a No. 1 role, with Carlton Davis III out for likely the remainder of the season. Arnold got burned badly on a double-move by veteran receiver Keenan Allen for a touchdown right before the half, and that was not his only mistake. He did rebound well when given a shot late, forcing an incompletion while lined up in a one-on-one situation with D.J. Moore. Robertson appeared solid in his move outside, and Ifeatu Melifonwu, in his season debut, registered a sack in the fourth quarter. Grade: B-

Special teams

Jake Bates went 2-for-3 on the day, but holding that miss against him would be ludicrous. It was a 65-yard attempt at the end of the second quarter that was originally supposed to be a 60-yard try, if not for a false start. Honestly, those five yards might've made the difference because his kick wasn't off by all that much. Vaki and Reynolds combined to average 27.7 yards on their three kick returns, including a 36-yard return by Vaki. Grade: A

Coaching

Once again, the Lions found a way to not let a loss snowball; it's been more than two years since they've fallen in consecutive weeks. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson deserves a shoutout here, too, because the fake fumble he drew up that led to LaPorta's touchdown was a play only a mad scientist could actually have the courage to attempt in a live game. Grade: A

rsilva@detroitnews.com

@rich_silva18

[whatever_gong82]

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nfl/lions/2024/12/22/lions-bounce-back-tame-bears-for-franchise-record-13th-win/77148721007/

[whatever_gong82]

Paywall article.

Wojo: Lions use talent and tricks to batter Bears, close in on No. 1 seed

Bob Wojnowski
The Detroit News


Chicago — First, the Lions won in straightforward fashion. Mere moments later, they won again, in surprising fashion.

The cheers from behind the locker room door interrupted Dan Campbell as he addressed the media, not realizing a good day just got even better. The Lions thrashed the Bears as they should, 34-17, to set a franchise record with their 13th victory and further solidify their playoff standing.

Despite their mound of injuries, the Lions didn’t need much help but got some anyway. The Eagles lost to Washington, 36-33, on Jayden Daniels’ late 9-yard touchdown pass, tightening the Lions’ grip on the NFC’s No. 1 seed. Campbell heard the roar from the locker room as players watched the finish on their cellphones, and he wondered what happened.

Told the Eagles (12-3) lost the lead with six seconds left, he smiled.

Lions quarterback Jared Goff had another game of more than 300 yards passing, with three touchdowns against the Bears.
“Well, why don’t we just sit here and wait for this,” said Campbell, although he really wasn’t interested in waiting. The Lions (13-2) couldn’t wait to get started Sunday, taking nothing for granted after a week of counting up injuries and getting counted out by some. Now they have a cushion ahead of the Eagles, with only the Vikings (13-2) an impediment to the NFC's top seed with two games remaining, including the finale against Minnesota.

“Look, it takes a special group of guys to emotionally, physically, psychologically bounce back after a tough loss, especially when you haven't lost in a while,” Campbell said. “You get through that, and you lick your wounds a little bit, and then you get back on your feet. … I just think we've got a group of guys that all feel the same way. We don't go in the tank. We don't lack confidence.”

Campbell had rightly insisted that last week’s 48-42 loss to the Bills wasn’t a crusher, and the injuries were far from insurmountable, contrary to public opinion. Players refuted any notion of peril after their 11-game winning streak was snapped, and Campbell quipped they just needed to get scrappy and gnaw on “moldy bread.” So they came to Chicago, home of the NFC North’s moldy-bread Bears, and hammered their point.

This was always the answer to the probing question. How do the Lions compensate for a decimated defense? Well, count ‘em up. Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jameson Williams, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta, Penei Sewell and the rest of the offensive line. Oh, and coordinator Ben Johnson, who showed off his creative wares that surely interest the 4-11 Bears, and any team with a head coach opening.

The Lions rolled up 475 yards and punted only once. It was essentially over early in the second quarter, when Goff dropped a perfect pass to a streaking Jameson Williams for an 82-yard touchdown to make it 20-0. The Lions weren’t playing around now, even as they got back to playing around.

On a marvelous trick play in the third quarter, they metaphorically responded to those who said they were down. On first down from the Bears’ 21, the Lions faked that they were down. Goff stumbled as he reached to hand the ball to Gibbs, who fell to the ground. As offensive linemen yelled, “Fumble!” the Bears reacted to the alleged broken play by ignoring everything else.

Goff simply stood up and threw to a wide-open LaPorta for a 21-yard touchdown to quell a Bears threat and restore a 34-14 lead. The idea of trickery isn’t just to surprise and paralyze the defense but to empower and engage the Lions players, and this Johnson special — the “Stumble-rooski?” — shall live forever on YouTube.

“That was one of Ben’s brainchilds,” Campbell said. “We cooked it all week. … We want our guys to be challenged, we want them to be accountable, we want them to have fun, to have ownership and investment. I love where we’re at. Got a lot to clean up, but we have a resilient group.”

In fact, they haven’t lost back-to-back games in more than two years since October 2022. This victory doesn’t solve everything, but it shuts down a narrative, at least for now. They lost David Montgomery, perhaps for the season, but Gibbs absolutely is workhorse-worthy, running for 109 yards and adding 45 yards receiving. The Lions are still loaded on offense and still capable of unloading, digging even deeper into their tote of talent and tricks.

Beating up the Bears is no huge accomplishment, but the way they did it was notable. On Thanksgiving, the Lions nearly blew a big lead against the Bears and hung on for a 23-20 victory. Missing two more key starters — Alim McNeill and Carlton Davis — the defense remained aggressive. Rookie Caleb Williams threw for 334 yards, including 141 to Keenan Allen, but the Bears couldn’t run at all, and didn’t really threaten.

That’s because the Lions were determined to seize from the start, and the secondary held up, led by safety Brian Branch. Meanwhile, Goff again was in complete command, completing 23 of 32 for 336 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. His connection with Williams continues to shine (143 yards receiving), and Williams continues to learn (hopefully) from his mistakes.

He was flagged for another taunting penalty on the Bears’ sideline, and Campbell had a vigorous conversation with him on the bench. The mental lapses by Williams need to stop, but Campbell isn’t belaboring or berating.

“He knew,” Campbell said. “That's what I love about him. He doesn't get bent out of shape; it doesn't affect the way he plays the rest of the game. I really love where he's at right now.”


Yes, the Lions play on the edge, with an edge. But there’s an equilibrium about it that Campbell carefully measures. While losing Montgomery was a blow, getting more touches for Gibbs — 23 rushes, four catches — is the counterbalance.

“I think we're so good at focusing on what matters and dialing back in every week,” Goff said. “I think Dan (Campbell) leads the charge in that. We lose last week, everyone thinks we're done now, and it's like, all right, forget that; it's not even part of our process.”


A trip to San Francisco is next, followed by the Vikings at Ford Field. Maybe the Lions have the division clinched by then, maybe there’s more work to do. There’s plenty more ahead in the playoffs, which is why landing the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage is paramount.

This was an impressive response to fresh obstacles. That said, Campbell doesn’t make the obstacles any larger than they are.


“As I told them, the two most important things for me were, I wanted to see us play Detroit football, and I wanted to win,” Campbell said. “Basically, I just wanted to see our identity take shape. Now we're back on our feet and it's about cleaning some things up, because what was good enough today will not be good enough for Minnesota, and it won't be good enough for Philly or whoever, Tampa, the Rams. We've got to get more efficient at winning, and this was a good step that way.”

One big bite of mold doesn’t solve everything, but it sure settles things down, and fires things up. One week after making people nervous, the Lions reminded everyone how many dynamic players, and plays, they still have.


Bob.wojnowski@detroitnews.com

@bobwojnowski

[whatever_gong82]

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nfl/lions/2024/12/22/detroit-lions-game-score-vs-chicago-bears-34-17-win-week-16/77149732007/

[whatever_gong82]

Detroit Lions' Ben Johnson would be tough to replace, but he gave Bears reason to hire him

Paywall article.

Jeff Seidel
Detroit Free Press



CHICAGO — Imagine Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson interviewing for the Chicago Bears head coaching position.

Bears executive: “Tell us a time when you faced some obstacles and what did you do about it?"

Johnson, I imagine, would break into a confident smile and say something like: “Well, remember that time I hung up 34 on you? I mean, in your stadium on a cold December afternoon? Yeah, that’s how I handle adversity. We were missing our left guard and lost one of our stud running backs but we didn’t miss a beat and, well, spanked you.”

Boom. Drop the mic.

Lions 34, Bears 17.


Bears executive: “OK, how do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?”

Now, Johnson, I imagine, could say something like: “You mean like playing an NFL game after everybody outside our building was freaking out because we put up 42 against Buffalo and lost? Yeah, well, I’d just — here, let me just show you.”

At this point, he could simply show the highlights on his phone:

There’s Jared Goff throwing an 82-yard bomb to Jameson Williams.


There’s Jahmyr Gibbs putting up more than 150 yards of total offense.

Johnson, I imagine, could say: “We basically did anything we wanted. I was so deep into my playbook, I started running plays, just to set up false tendencies for the playoffs. I mean, our guys ran out of touchdown celebrations — in the first half."

Many in Chicago believe Johnson is the leading candidate for the Bears jobs. Which makes a ton of sense.

Because Johnson is so dang good.




Bears executive; “Could you give us an example of how you apply creativity to your job?”

Johnson, I’m pretty sure, would break out laughing: “How about this? How about, we pull out our stumble-bumble play. We had Gibbs act like he was falling one way, and Goff acted like he was stumbling the other way, and then he popped up and threw a touchdown to Sam LaPorta.”

Bears executive: “Wait. You did that on purpose?”


Wry smile.

Johnson “And y'all fell for it.”


Bears executive: "How do you handle success?”

Johnson might say: “Listen, even though we beat you, I’m not entirely happy. This wasn’t a perfect performance for us by any stretch of the imagination. We had some red-zone issues. We had to settle for some field goals, and no offense to Jake Bates, but I hate field goals. I want touchdowns. And I wish we could have run out the clock in the fourth quarter but it didn't work."


Glenn should get look, too

If the Bears were smart, and there is no evidence they are, they should also take a strong look at Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.

Now, that interview would be a hoot.


Bears executive: “What accomplishment are you most proud of?"

Glenn, I’m sure, would crack a smirk: “Listen, I’ve basically lost my entire defense to injury. But my guys play hard for me. My guys fly to the ball. Were we perfect on Sunday? Not at all. It irks me to no end that you guys scored on us. But we are still a work in project. Because, dang, I’m still learning some of these guy’s names.”



Nobody wants to see them leave but...

Listen, I’m not advocating for either Glenn or Johnson to leave.

But the Bears would be absolutely stupid to not take a strong look at either of them.

Actually, they would be stupid not to hire either one of them.


Would this be good for the Lions?

No, I wouldn’t want to see either one in Chicago because they are both fantastic coaches.


But while the Bears were hurting themselves and making stilly mistakes, the Lions simply overpowered them. Simply built a big lead and played out the win.


The Lions showed the Bears executives what good football looks like — any game you win.

Or what great coaching looks like.

And how to overcome adversity.


Bears executive: “Mr. Johnson, why do you want to be NFL coach?”

Actually, we don’t have to wonder about that. He actually answered that last week. “Yeah, I’d say this, I think there’s a burning desire in every man to find what he’s made out of, push the limits and see if he’s got what it takes. So, yeah, there’s a fire there. Now, when that time is, I don’t know when that’ll be, but there’s certainly a fire there.”


Bears executive: “Would you like to coach the Bears?”

Alas, that’s the big question, right?


Will the Bears pony up enough money to hire Johnson?

Would he even want this job?


That will be answered after the season. But for now, he sure showed them why he's such a fantastic coach.

The whole point is to win, and that's exactly what the Lions did Sunday.



Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on X @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.

[chemiclord]

One thing that Sheila Ford-Hamp has demonstrated is that if/when either of the coordinators do move on, it won't be because of money.