Its hard to point to one but Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune pointed out what I thought was probably (collectively) the most important reason why the Bears beat the Lions yesterday in hisFour Downs feature:
“The Bears were resilient on defense. Charles Tillman blew outside contain on Jahvid Best’s 45-yard run in the first half but manned up on Calvin Johnson on the outside. The Lions receiver made just two receptions for 20 yards against Tillman.”
“[The Bears] held Ndamukong Suh in check, focusing on him with Kyle Vanden Bosch out. Suh, who should win defensive rookie of the year, had four tackles and one pass breakup.”
Even though Johnson did have a touchdown reception at the end of the first half, I’d say the Bears did a pretty good job of containing the Lions two best playmakers for most of the game. If you do that, you will usually win.