Trubisky, Bears hang on to beat Stafford-less Lions

[November 11, 2019]  Mitch Trubisky threw for 173 yards and three touchdowns to help the host Chicago Bears snap a four-game losing streak with a 20-13 victory against the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon.

Chicago (4-5) won for the first time since Week 4 to take sole possession of third place in the NFC North. The Lions (3-5-1), playing without injured starting quarterback Matthew Stafford, lost for the fifth time in six games.

Backup quarterback Jeff Driskel's fourth-down pass toward the end zone from the Bears' 25-yard line fell incomplete as time expired.

The Lions cut the Bears' lead to 20-13 on a 47-yard touchdown pass from Driskel to Kenny Golladay with 5:53 left in the fourth quarter. The Lions got the ball back after a Bears' punt and advanced into Chicago territory, but they could not score. An apparent Detroit conversion on a fourth-and-1 from the Bears' 36-yard line was negated on an offensive pass interference call before the Lions turned the ball over on downs.

Chicago failed to cross its own 30-yard line on its first four possessions, but finally broke through on the final drive before halftime. Trubisky completed 6 of 7 passes and capped an 80-yard drive with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Ben Braunecker with 25 seconds left in the second quarter.

Eddy Pineiro's point-after gave the Bears a 7-6 lead at intermission. Despite outgaining the Bears 150-101 in the first 30 minutes, the Lions only managed field goals of 22 and 54 yards from Matt Prater.

The Bears extended their lead on the opening possession of the third quarter, as Trubisky punctuated a 76-yard drive with a 9-yard scoring pass to Tarik Cohen. Trubisky hooked up with Taylor Gabriel for a 24-yard touchdown pass with 9:38 to go, as the Bears capitalized on a Detroit turnover. Trubisky entered the game with just five touchdowns and zero in his past two contests.

Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky (10) passes against the Detroit Lions in the first half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

Driskel, starting in place of Stafford, completed 4 of 5 passes on a 13-play, 72-yard opening drive, misfiring only on a third-and-goal from the Chicago 4. Prater converted from 22 yards.

Stafford missed the game with what ESPN reported were multiple fractures in his back, snapping a streak of 136 consecutive starts. The run of successive starts was the sixth longest by a quarterback in NFL history. Stafford on Wednesday told reporters he was "good to go" and "not really worried about it" after reportedly sustaining the injury late in the Lions' Week 9 road loss to the Oakland Raiders.

Bears inside linebacker Danny Trevathan left the game after suffering a grisly injury to his left arm while attempting to tackle Driskel on Detroit's second drive of the game. As Trevathan fell toward the ground, his arm bent back awkwardly near the elbow.

Lions offensive tackle Rick Wagner and running back Ty Johnson later left the game and were ruled out with concussions.

Driskel finished 27-for-46 passing for 269 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

David Montgomery rushed 17 times for 60 yards to lead Chicago.

--Field Level Media

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