Williams closes in on team passing record, 4,000-yard mark as Bears try to lock in No. 2 seed

Detroit (8-8) at Chicago (11-5)

Sunday, 4:25 p.m. EST, Fox.

Against the spread: Lions 7-9; Bears 9-6-1.

Series record: Bears lead 105-81-5.

Last meeting: Lions beat Bears 52-21 at Detroit on Sept. 14.

Last week: Lions lost at Minnesota 23-10; Bears lost at San Francisco 42-38.

Lions offense: overall (6), rush (15), pass (5), scoring (3).

Lions defense: overall (18), rush (16), pass (19), scoring (22-T).

Bears offense: overall (3), rush (3), pass (11), scoring (10).

Bears defense: overall (28), rush (28), pass (21), scoring (22-T).

Turnover differential: Lions plus-4; Bears plus-22.

QB Jared Goff. The four-time Pro Bowler hopes to show the form he had in the first meeting against Chicago and finish on a strong note coming off his worst performance this season. Goff set season highs with two interceptions and three fumbles and matched one by getting sacked five times last week. In the first game against the Bears, he threw for 334 yards and matched a career high with five touchdown passes, including three scores to Amon-Ra St. Brown.

QB Caleb Williams: Last year's No. 1 overall draft pick, Williams has a chance to set the franchise single-season passing record and become the first Bears player to throw for 4,000 yards. With 3,730 yards, he needs 109 to surpass Erik Kramer's 3,838 in 1995. Chicago is the only team in the NFL not to have a 4,000-yard passer. Williams came up big last week, throwing for a season-high 330 yards and two touchdowns. It was his 23rd game without an interception, something no other starting NFL quarterback has done in their first two seasons. Dallas' Dak Prescott had 22 games without an INT in his first two years.

Lions DE Aidan Hutchinson vs. Chicago's offensive line. Hutchinson has given the Bears all they can handle in four seasons, with 4 1/2 sacks in five games. He has a career-high 13 1/2 on the season, including one in Week 2 against Chicago. He'll be going against a far different offensive line this time, one that's performing as well as any in the NFL. Rookie Ozzy Trapilo has settled in at left tackle after Braxton Jones was benched in Week 4 and initially replaced by Theo Benedet.

Lions: St. Brown (knee) could be a game-time decision. ... C Graham Glasgow (knee) missed the game against Pittsburgh two weeks ago and was relegated to two special teams snaps against Minnesota. … LT Taylor Decker (shoulder), who will mull retirement in the offseason, is expected to start after missing last week's game because of an illness. ... TE Sam LaPorta is improving following back surgery in mid-November, though he is not completely healed.

Bears: WR Rome Odunze (foot) has missed the past four games. ... Chicago hopes WR Luther Burden (quad) plays this week after he was hurt at the end of the San Francisco game. ... LB Noah Sewell (Achilles tendon) was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday.

The Bears have dropped three straight and six of seven against Detroit, including an embarrassing loss in Week 2 that put them at 0-2. The Lions came within three points of the franchise regular-season record set against Chicago in 1997; they scored 59 against Cleveland in the 1957 NFL championship game. The 52 points allowed by Chicago were three shy of its franchise mark.

Detroit, which came into the season as a Super Bowl favorite, could go from capturing the No. 1 seed in the NFC last season to finishing last in the NFC North. The Lions are tied with Minnesota in the division, with the Vikings winning both meetings. ... Detroit has lost three straight, its worst streak since a five-game slide in 2022. ... The Lions lead the league with 21 rushing touchdowns by running backs — 13 by Jahmyr Gibbs and eight by David Montgomery. ... The NFC North champion Bears fell out of the running for the No. 1 seed with last week's loss. They can secure the second seed and a home game against rival Green Bay with a win or a loss by Philadelphia to Washington. Chicago would get the third seed with a loss or tie combined with an Eagles victory. ... Ben Johnson needs one win to tie the franchise record for a first-year head coach by Matt Nagy in 2018. ... The Bears have won six straight home games since a season-opening loss to Minnesota. ... Chicago leads the NFL in interceptions (22), takeaways (32) and turnover differential (plus-22). The Bears have also committed a league-low 10 turnovers. ... S Kevin Byard leads the NFL with six interceptions. CB Nahshon Wright is tied for second with five INTs and has a league-leading eight takeaways. ... Chicago is the only team with at least two 700-yard rushers — D’Andre Swift (1,047) and Kyle Monangai (769). ... With 9 1/2 sacks, DE Montez Sweat can secure his second double-digit season. He had 12 1/2 for Washington and Chicago in 2023. ... Burden, a rookie, had career highs of eight receptions for 138 yards and caught a TD pass against San Francisco, after missing the previous game with an ankle injury.

Though he caught just one pass against San Francisco, Chicago's DJ Moore has played a bigger role in recent weeks with Odunze sidelined. If Burden is limited or can't play, that could create more opportunities for him.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL