Special Teams
Lions kicker Matt Prater is having another strong season, hitting 15 of 18 field-goal attempts on the season, including 5 of 6 from 50-plus yards. He’s also been excellent in his career against the Bears, hitting 20 of 23 field-goals. Chances are he will be called upon on Sunday to make some critical kicks in tough windy weather. He’ll be ready.
The Lions signed former Michigan Wolverine and Minnesota Vikings punter Matt Wile to their practice squad this week, since incumbent Sam Martin is dealing with an abdominal injury. Martin is in the middle of a so-so season, and Wile could be quickly called up to the active roster should Martin be unavailable on Sunday. Wile appeared in two games earlier this season for the Atlanta Falcons.
After last season’s kicking struggles, particularly in the playoffs, the Bears held an extensive series of tryouts over the offseason, before settling on Eddy Pineiro. He’s been steady, hitting 12 of his 15 field-goal attempts, as well as all of his extra-point tries. Pineiro did miss two critical kicks in a 17-16 loss at home to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 8, including the potential 41-yard game-winner as time expired.
The Bears have one of the league’s most explosive returners in Cordarrelle Patterson, who leads the NFL with 451 kickoff return yards and ranks second with a 30.1 yard per kickoff return average. He bested Lions returner Jamal Agnew‘s 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown earlier this season with a 102-yard score of his own against the New Orleans Saints.