Detroit
07
Chicago34
Detroit
Chicago
| Detroit 7 | Chicago 34 |
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| September 17, 2006 | Soldier Field-Attendance: 62,181 (61,000) | Time: 2:55 |
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| Scoring Summary |
| FIRST QUARTER | DET | CHI |
| CHI | TD | 10:11 | Rex Grossman pass completion to the middle to John Gilmore for 3 yards for a touchdown. | 0 | 6 |
| CHI | PAT | 10:11 | Robbie Gould extra point attempt is good. | 0 | 7 |
| CHI | FG | 6:19 | Robbie Gould 32 yard field goal attempt is good. | 0 | 10 |
| SECOND QUARTER | DET | CHI |
| CHI | TD | 14:16 | Rex Grossman pass completion to the middle to Bernard Berrian for 41 yards for a touchdown. | 0 | 16 |
| CHI | PAT | 14:16 | Robbie Gould extra point attempt is good. | 0 | 17 |
| CHI | TD | 3:36 | Rex Grossman pass completion to the middle to Desmond Clark for 31 yards for a touchdown. | 0 | 23 |
| CHI | PAT | 3:36 | Robbie Gould extra point attempt is good. | 0 | 24 |
| THIRD QUARTER | DET | CHI |
| DET | TD | 10:20 | Jon Kitna rush up the middle for 1 yard for a touchdown. | 6 | 24 |
| DET | PAT | 10:20 | Jason Hanson extra point attempt is good. | 7 | 24 |
| CHI | TD | 0:32 | Rex Grossman pass completion to the middle to John Gilmore for 5 yards for a touchdown. | 7 | 30 |
| CHI | PAT | 0:32 | Robbie Gould extra point attempt is good. | 7 | 31 |
| FOURTH QUARTER | DET | CHI |
| CHI | FG | 10:03 | Robbie Gould 45 yard field goal attempt is good. | 7 | 34 |
| Statistics |
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| Team Stat Comparison |
| DET | CHI | |
| 1st Downs | 15 | 22 |
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| 3rd down efficiency | 1-9 | 6-12 |
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| 4th down efficiency | 1-1 | 0-0 |
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| Total Yards | 245 | 383 |
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| Passing | 199 | 294 |
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| Comp-Att | 23-30 | 21-28 |
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| Yards per pass | 5.5 | 10.5 |
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| Rushing | 46 | 89 |
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| Rushing Attempts | 14 | 34 |
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| Yards per rush | 3.3 | 2.6 |
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| Penalties | 14-104 | 6-93 |
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| Sacks against | 6-31 | 0-0 |
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| Turnovers | 3 | 1 |
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| Fumbles-lost | 3-3 | 2-1 |
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| Interceptions thrown | 0 | 0 |
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| Possession | 27:00 | 33:00 |
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| Officials |
Now, the quarterback who was hailed at the end of last season is earning praise again after a difficult preseason.
Grossman had his best game as a pro, and the Chicago Bears' defense silenced Detroit's Roy Williams and the Lions 34-7. Grossman set career highs with 289 yards and four touchdown passes Sunday.
''They've been on him so hard the last few weeks,'' said Clark, who caught five passes for 85 yards and a touchdown. ''You sit back and you're like, 'Damn, just a few months he was (hailed) and now you're booing him.' I like what he's doing. I hope he can keep it up.''
Plagued by injuries since being drafted in the first round in 2003, Grossman is healthy and producing. He completed 20 of 27 passes with no interceptions and set a career-high in yards for the second straight week after throwing for 262 in a 26-0 season-opening win at Green Bay.
John Gilmore caught two short touchdown passes, including a 3-yarder just under five minutes into the game. Bernard Berrian had five receptions for 89 yards, with a lunging 41-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter.
''We've always known we had a good offense,'' Grossman said. ''It's just a matter of executing when there are plays to be made. In the first couple of games we definitely have.''
A defense that handed the Packers' Brett Favre the first shutout of his career held the Lions to 245 yards and recovered three fumbles. Detroit (0-2) committed 14 penalties for 104 yards, seven for 58 yards in the first quarter alone. And a hands-to-the-face call against Jamar Fletcher in the third quarter wiped out an interception that Boss Bailey returned about 25 yards to the end zone.
Williams caught six passes for 71 yards after guaranteeing a win over the Bears. He was booed loudly after catching his first pass.
Jon Kitna wound up 23-of-30 for 230 yards and was sacked six times.
Williams said Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher brought up the guarantee.
''He just said, 'You're going to guarantee next week as well?' and I said, 'Yeah, sure will. As long as we do what we're supposed to do.' They did nothing special. They're a good defense, they run to the football, they get pressure on the quarterback.''
Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris dismissed Williams' guarantee, saying, ''A lot of talk comes from a lack of confidence in what you can do. ... My rookie year here (2004), we used to talk a lot and we weren't that good.''
They talked quite a bit before their playoff game against Carolina last year and lost.
Chicago (2-0) wasted no time pouncing on Detroit.
The Lions' first possession ended on the third play when Tank Johnson sacked Kitna and jarred the ball loose. Urlacher recovered at the Detroit 3, and Grossman connected with Gilmore for a touchdown.
Detroit's second possession started with a 29-yard run by Kevin Jones that put the ball on the Bears 41, but Alex Brown stripped him on the next play and recovered the fumble. That led to a 32-yard field goal by Robbie Gould.
The lead grew to 17-0 in the opening minute of the second quarter when Grossman found a lunging Berrian at the goal line. Berrian juggled the ball and tucked it in as he hit the ground, but the Lions did not challenge it.
For that matter, they didn't challenge the Bears.
Chicago's defense kept the pressure on all day, and the offensive line held its ground.
A Lions team that did not reach the end zone in a 9-6 loss to Seattle finally broke through when Kitna ran in from the 1 early in the third quarter.
It was little consolation for a team dealing with issues on and off the field. Defensive line coach Joe Cullen was arrested twice in a two-week span because police say he drove nude and on suspicion of drunken driving. He was with the team after missing the opener.
''Let's be honest,'' Kitna said. ''The Bears' defense is a good defense, but, that being said, I thought it was a lot more of us than it was them. ... We caused ourselves problems.''
For the second straight year I had to endure the wrath of watching the Lions play like a last place team and put up with the arrogant Bears fans. 
Unlike last year, I left at the half as I refused to watch anymore of the carnage I saw the past two years. Where can I start? How about with Mr. Guar-Roy-Sheed Williams? Talk about someone that needs to keep their trap shut and try and live up to expectations. The only thing guaranteed Roy was another dismal effort from the Offense. And how about the 40 points he promised? Bear fan had a field day on me since I wore my Williams jersey and all I heard the entire game was - he guaranteed this and 40 points? The offense could not have gotten off to a worse start. Nothing like watching Kitna and Jones commit back to back turnovers to start the game! That ended up costing the Lions a touchdown right off the bat. It was a sign of things to come. Rex Grossman had a career day throwing for over four touchdowns. The Lions went over six quarters before they got their first touchdown of the year. Mike Martz was brought here to get one of the NFL's worst offenses in gear. Unfortunately, there is not much he can do when he is working with a group of players that lack talent.
All in all, it was a repeat of last years nightmare and one to quickly forget about.
Offense: --- F. One touchdown in two games? Two consecutive turnovers to start the game? Penalty after penalty? It was one horrific effort to say the least. It looks like Kevin Jones is on his way to being another Millen first round draft pick flop! With the exception of his 29 yard first quarter run, Jones had 12 carries for 15 yards! He also had two fumbles as well. Roy Williams, who was awful last week, led the Lions 71 yards on six receptions. Roy should learn to keep his mouth shut the next time he wants to guarantee a victory - how about guarantee he will play better! The offensive line did an awful job protecting Kitna as they gave up six sacks and once again got man handled on the line of scrimmage. The Offense better get out of their slump next week with the pitiful Packers up next.
Defense: --- F. Where was the Defense that played so well last week against the Seahawks? It was no where to be found today as they made Rex Grossman, who made his first back to back start, throw for four touchdowns! The inept Bears Offense had almost 400 total yards for the day. One of the few bright spots was Ernie Sims who has been the lone rookie this year to have any impact.
Special Teams: --- F. Coverge was lousy, again! Drummond had no decent returns, again! Hanson missed a field goal, again! Make that back to back pitiful performances by the special teams.
Coaching: --- F. It was great to see Marinelli blame himself and the coaching staff for this disastrous game. Too bad he failed to name a handful of other players that did not earn their pay check. There are no excuses not having a team ready to play, especially after what happened a year ago at Soldier Field.
Overall: --- F. Walking to the game, I had countless Bears fans taunting me but it was great to talk back knowing that there was a good chance the Lions could pull out a victory. Leaving my seat in the last row in the upper deck down 100 steps was quite painful. All I could say was "Go Tigers!" I was embarrassed to be a Lions fan, just like I was one year ago. It is safe to say that the season is over and the Lions will be lucky enough to reach the .500 mark. Fortunately, they should get their first win of the year next week against the Packers. Another loss and I think it is safe to say the "Fire Millen" brigade will be back in full force.
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