DETROIT (AP) — With a raucous crowd helping out
every step of the way, Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions made the most of
their long-awaited return to Monday night.
Stafford threw two touchdown passes and Jahvid Best
added an 88-yard scoring run in Detroit's 24-13 victory over Chicago. The Bears
looked unnerved from the start by the noise level at Ford Field. They committed
nine false start penalties and struggled to protect quarterback Jay Cutler.
"Our fans came out and did an unbelievable
job. We need that kind of support every week," Stafford said. "That's
just the potential of this city. We know that they can get behind us like that
and come out and really wreck a game for another team."
The Lions are now 5-0 for the first time since 1956
— the year before their most recent NFL title. This was their first
regular-season Monday night game in a decade, and with the nation watching,
they showed emphatically this is no longer the sorry franchise that endured a
winless season just three years ago.
Instead, Detroit kept pace with NFC North rival
Green Bay, the league's only other undefeated team. The Lions have won nine
straight games dating to last season.
"We need to get used to playing games like
this," Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said. "We need to get used to
playing prime time games. That's a big step for this team, that's a big step
for the city."
Stafford threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Calvin
Johnson in the second quarter, and Best's touchdown was the second-longest run
in franchise history. But more than those two highlights, this game will be
remembered for the Bears' repeated inability to deal with their surroundings.
Chicago's problems began before the ball was even
snapped. The Bears (2-3) were whistled for six false starts in the first half —
more than any other team has committed for an entire game this season,
according to STATS, LLC.
When he did drop back to throw, Cutler didn't have
much time. Detroit sacked him three times and came close on several other
occasions.
"I threw a couple left-handed, one over my
head and at least one underhanded. When you have to do those kind of things,
you aren't going to be successful," Cutler said. "We started with a
regular count, but the guys couldn't hear me, so we had to go to a silent
count. It was a lot of things."
Cutler went 28 of 38 for 249 yards and a touchdown,
while Stafford was 19 of 26 for 219 yards with one interception.
Chicago's Matt Forte ran for 116 yards, but he was
upstaged by Best, the second-year running back who rushed for 163 yards,
surpassing 100 for the first time in his career.
The Lions trailed 10-7 at halftime before two
third-quarter touchdowns. Stafford put Detroit ahead with an 18-yard strike to
Brandon Pettigrew, and Best's long run padded the Lions' advantage.
Johnson's touchdown catch was his ninth this
season. In Detroit's previous game, he became the first NFL player to catch
more than one touchdown pass in each of the first four games of a season.
Chicago was whistled for three false starts on its
first offensive series and another on its second possession. The Bears used two
timeouts in the first quarter in short-yardage situations, and in the final
minute of the quarter, Forte was stopped by Ndamukong Suh on fourth-and-1.
After the Bears unsuccessfully challenged the call,
Chicago was left without any remaining timeouts for the half, not a great
situation in front of 67,861 fans — a Ford Field record for a Lions game.
"Blue-collar towns are the best sports towns.
When cities are going through tough economic times, states are going through
tough economic times, people look to sports as an escape. We have a
responsibility to give people something to smile about," Schwartz said.
"We feel a very strong bond to this city. I think our work ethic reflects
the city of Detroit's work ethic."
On that note, Schwartz was quick to turn his
attention toward next weekend's matchup. It's another home game for the Lions,
this one against a San Francisco team that's also been an interesting surprise
this year. The 49ers (4-1) lead the NFC West.
"I don't think you win any awards for 5-0.
We've got to play 16 games," Schwartz said. "We've got a long way to
go. It's a good start."
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.
(AP
Photo/Duane Burleson)
