While the rest of us are eating turkey and stuffing on Thursday, the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears will be facing off for a Thanksgiving divisional showdown. Detroit has a long tradition of hosting one of the Thanksgiving games and this year it’s Chicago who will be visiting Ford Field.
The tradition started in 1934 and since then, the Lions are 37-45-2 all-time. They lost to the Green Bay Packers last year on Turkey Day, but are favored to win this season. Detroit sits at 10-1 and first in the division, while Chicago is 4-7 and last in the NFC North.
Even with their very different records, divisional games are always and the outcome is often surprising. While the Lions have been dominant, the other side has the 2024 No. 1 overall pick, someone Detroit head coach Dan Campbell says has impressed him, specifically as of late.
Ahead of their first meeting against Caleb Williams, Campbell complimented his opponent on how well the QB has adjusted.
“It’s not easy for any quarterback coming into this league, I don’t care who you are,” Campbell said, via NBC Sports. “Everything happens so much faster. The athletes, the looks that you get, the amount of separation or the lack of amount of separation that you had in college. So, those get on you, it takes a minute. And in between knowing protections, ‘Am I hot on this, what’s the look, I know this is a disguise, I don’t know if this is a disguise, the nickel is coming.'”
The Bears lost their last two games, falling 30-27 to the Minnesota Vikings last week and 20-19 to the Green Bay Packers the week before, but Williams’ numbers have been up. He threw for 340 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions against Minnesota and had 231 yards against the Packers, up from just 120 yards against the New England Patriots on Nov. 10.
Campbell has noticed Williams’ comfortability and progression.
“There’s just a lot and so what I’ve been impressed with is just he has grown, he has grown every game but these last two I really feel like he’s taken off and what they’re doing with him has been really good for him and he just looks very composed,” the head coach said. “He doesn’t get frazzled, plays pretty fast, and he’s an accurate passer, big arm, and he’s got some guys that can get open for him.”
The last two weeks, Williams has a new play caller in Thomas Brown the last two games, after firing OC Shane Waldron following the loss to New England.
So far this season, Williams has 2,356 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, along with 339 yards on the ground.
The Lions and Bears will kick off the holiday festivities on CBS at 12:30 p.m. ET. Grammy nominated singer Shaboozey will perform at halftime.
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Author: Shanna McCarriston
November 27, 2024 | 2:51 pm
