Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions: 2020 Week 1 Recap

Game story

In Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season on 2020-09-13, the Chicago Bears took care of business against the Detroit Lions, pulling away with a 27–23 final that stayed a one-score game deep into the second half.

The highest-scoring period was Q4 with 21 combined points — the stretch that most shaped the final margin.

M. Stafford (Detroit Lions) paced the passing game, with +4.90 total EPA, and -8.6% completion percentage over expected.

On the individual side, A. Miller (Chicago Bears) delivered the top overall EPA impact at +6.55 — the clearest player-of-the-game signal on the analytics sheet.

The momentum swing (-36.9% win probability) landed in the fourth quarter when Detroit Lions changed the game: (:06) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass incomplete deep left to 11-M.Jones (33-J.Johnson).

Line score

Final score and points by quarter.

Stars of the game

Top performers by total expected points added (EPA) across passing, rushing, and receiving.

1. 1 A. Miller · Chicago Bears · Receiving · +6.55 total EPA · 6 snaps · +1.09 EPA/play
2. 2 D. Amendola · Detroit Lions · Receiving · +6.32 total EPA · 7 snaps · +0.90 EPA/play
3. 3 M. Stafford · Detroit Lions · Passing · +4.90 total EPA · 50 snaps · +0.10 EPA/play
4. 4 T. Hockenson · Detroit Lions · Receiving · +4.86 total EPA · 5 snaps · +0.97 EPA/play
5. 5 M. Trubisky · Chicago Bears · Passing · +4.82 total EPA · 39 snaps · +0.12 EPA/play
6. 6 C. Patterson · Chicago Bears · Rushing · +1.97 total EPA · 4 snaps · +0.49 EPA/play
7. 7 D. Mooney · Chicago Bears · Receiving · +1.92 total EPA · 3 snaps · +0.64 EPA/play
8. 8 D. Montgomery · Chicago Bears · Rushing · +1.72 total EPA · 13 snaps · +0.13 EPA/play

Player of the game

FantasyHQ analytics player-of-the-game pick based on total EPA and signature plays.

Who scored touchdowns and field goals

Every touchdown and field goal with the player named in official play-by-play.

Touchdowns

• Detroit Lions — D. Swift (Q2 30:22)
• Detroit Lions — T. Hockenson (M. Stafford pass) (Q3 25:42)
• Chicago Bears — J. Graham (M. Trubisky pass) (Q4 13:43)
• Chicago Bears — J. Wims (M. Trubisky pass) (Q4 3:03)
• Chicago Bears — A. Miller (M. Trubisky pass) (Q4 2:00)

Field goals

• Detroit Lions — M. Prater (Q1 51:34)
• Chicago Bears — C. Santos (Q1 46:34)
• Detroit Lions — M. Prater (Q2 35:37)
• Chicago Bears — C. Santos (Q2 32:06)
• Detroit Lions — M. Prater (Q3 18:24)

How it unfolded, quarter by quarter

A quarter-by-quarter recap built from live scoring plays and play descriptions.

The opening quarter: The quarter finished even at 3–3. Detroit Lions connected on a field goal from the CHI 9 (Q1 51:34) — (6:34) 5-M.Prater 27 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.; Chicago Bears connected on a field goal from the DET 17 (Q1 46:34) — (1:34) 2-C.Santos 35 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell..

The second quarter: Detroit Lions won the period 10–3. Detroit Lions connected on a field goal from the CHI 14 (Q2 35:37) — (5:37) 5-M.Prater 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.; Chicago Bears connected on a field goal from the DET 10 (Q2 32:06) — (2:06) 2-C.Santos 28 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.; Detroit Lions found the end zone from the CHI 1 (Q2 30:22) — (:22) (Shotgun) 32-D.Swift right tackle for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.; Detroit Lions added 1 points from the CHI 15 (Q2 30:19) — 5-M.Prater extra point is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox..

The third quarter: Detroit Lions won the period 10–0. Detroit Lions found the end zone from the CHI 4 (Q3 25:42) — (10:42) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass short left to 88-T.Hockenson for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Detroit Lions added 1 points from the CHI 15 (Q3 25:37) — 5-M.Prater extra point is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.; Detroit Lions connected on a field goal from the CHI 26 (Q3 18:24) — (3:24) 5-M.Prater 44 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox..

The fourth quarter: Chicago Bears won the period 21–0. Chicago Bears found the end zone from the DET 2 (Q4 13:43) — (13:43) 10-M.Trubisky pass short right to 80-J.Graham for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Chicago Bears added 1 points from the DET 15 (Q4 13:39) — 2-C.Santos extra point is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.; Chicago Bears found the end zone from the DET 1 (Q4 3:03) — (3:03) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass short left to 83-J.Wims for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.; Chicago Bears added 1 points from the DET 15 (Q4 2:58) — 2-C.Santos extra point is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.; Chicago Bears found the end zone from the DET 27 (Q4 2:00) — (2:00) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass deep right to 17-A.Miller for 27 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Chicago Bears added 1 points from the DET 15 (Q4 1:54) — 2-C.Santos extra point is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell..

Turning points

Plays that moved win probability the most — the swings that decided the game.

• Detroit Lions (Q4 0:06) — (:06) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass incomplete deep left to 11-M.Jones (33-J.Johnson). [WPA -36.9% · EPA -2.55]
• Detroit Lions (Q4 2:45) — (2:45) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass short middle intended for 11-M.Jones INTERCEPTED by 23-K.Fuller (33-J.Johnson) at DET 42. 23-K.Fuller to DET 37 for 5 yards (88-T.Hockenson). [WPA -24.6% · EPA -3.75]
• Detroit Lions (Q4 0:28) — (:28) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass deep middle to 80-D.Amendola to CHI 16 for 32 yards (59-D.Trevathan). [WPA +22.0% · EPA +1.77]
• Chicago Bears (Q4 2:00) — (2:00) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass deep right to 17-A.Miller for 27 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +20.5% · EPA +3.00]
• Detroit Lions (Q4 0:34) — (:34) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass incomplete deep right to 87-Q.Cephus. [WPA -11.4% · EPA -0.32]

Impact plays

Highest expected-points added snaps that flipped field position and scoring chances.

• Detroit Lions (Q4 2:45) — (2:45) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass short middle intended for 11-M.Jones INTERCEPTED by 23-K.Fuller (33-J.Johnson) at DET 42. 23-K.Fuller to DET 37 for 5 yards (88-T.Hockenson). [WPA -24.6% · EPA -3.75]
• Detroit Lions (Q4 4:08) — (4:08) 5-M.Prater 55 yard field goal is No Good, Wide Right, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox. [WPA -1.8% · EPA -3.58]
• Chicago Bears (Q1 54:02) — (9:02) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass incomplete deep middle to 19-T.Ginn. [WPA -5.8% · EPA -3.25]
• Chicago Bears (Q4 2:00) — (2:00) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass deep right to 17-A.Miller for 27 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +20.5% · EPA +3.00]

Quarterback report card

M.Stafford led all passers in efficiency for Detroit Lions, setting the tone in the passing game according to FantasyHQ analytics.

• M.Stafford (Detroit Lions) · 50 dropbacks · 48.0% completion · -8.6% CPOE · +0.10 EPA/play · +4.90 total EPA
• M.Trubisky (Chicago Bears) · 39 dropbacks · 51.3% completion · -6.7% CPOE · +0.12 EPA/play · +4.82 total EPA

Team stats comparison

Side-by-side offensive and defensive efficiency from FantasyHQ analytics.

By the numbers

Despite the final score, Chicago Bears generated the better offensive EPA per play (+0.04 vs -0.04), suggesting they moved the ball more efficiently.

• Chicago Bears: 12 drives, +3.80 total EPA, 5 scoring drives
• Detroit Lions: 12 drives, -3.39 total EPA, 5 scoring drives

Key takeaways

What to remember for fantasy research, film review, and follow-up box score digging.

• Chicago Bears leaves with the win and the better postgame narrative for Week-to-week momentum.
• One-score margin — fantasy managers should double-check garbage-time stats before drawing conclusions.
• A. Miller (Chicago Bears) is the first name to pull up for highlight reels and prop-retrospective research.
• M. Stafford (DET) finished below expected efficiency — volume may have masked accuracy issues.
• M. Trubisky (CHI) finished below expected efficiency — volume may have masked accuracy issues.

Every scoring play

Chronological scoring with field position and full play-by-play context.

1. Detroit Lions FG (+3) — Q1 51:34 · CHI 9 · Score 0-3
   (6:34) 5-M.Prater 27 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.
2. Chicago Bears FG (+3) — Q1 46:34 · DET 17 · Score 3-3
   (1:34) 2-C.Santos 35 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.
3. Detroit Lions FG (+3) — Q2 35:37 · CHI 14 · Score 3-6
   (5:37) 5-M.Prater 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.
4. Chicago Bears FG (+3) — Q2 32:06 · DET 10 · Score 6-6
   (2:06) 2-C.Santos 28 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.
5. Detroit Lions TD (+6) — Q2 30:22 · CHI 1 · Score 6-12
   (:22) (Shotgun) 32-D.Swift right tackle for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.
6. Detroit Lions XP (+1) — Q2 30:19 · CHI 15 · Score 6-13
   5-M.Prater extra point is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.
7. Detroit Lions TD (+6) — Q3 25:42 · CHI 4 · Score 6-19
   (10:42) (Shotgun) 9-M.Stafford pass short left to 88-T.Hockenson for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
8. Detroit Lions XP (+1) — Q3 25:37 · CHI 15 · Score 6-20
   5-M.Prater extra point is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.
9. Detroit Lions FG (+3) — Q3 18:24 · CHI 26 · Score 6-23
   (3:24) 5-M.Prater 44 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-D.Muhlbach, Holder-3-J.Fox.
10. Chicago Bears TD (+6) — Q4 13:43 · DET 2 · Score 12-23
    (13:43) 10-M.Trubisky pass short right to 80-J.Graham for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
11. Chicago Bears XP (+1) — Q4 13:39 · DET 15 · Score 13-23
    2-C.Santos extra point is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.
12. Chicago Bears TD (+6) — Q4 3:03 · DET 1 · Score 19-23
    (3:03) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass short left to 83-J.Wims for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.
13. Chicago Bears XP (+1) — Q4 2:58 · DET 15 · Score 20-23
    2-C.Santos extra point is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.
14. Chicago Bears TD (+6) — Q4 2:00 · DET 27 · Score 26-23
    (2:00) (Shotgun) 10-M.Trubisky pass deep right to 17-A.Miller for 27 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
15. Chicago Bears XP (+1) — Q4 1:54 · DET 15 · Score 27-23
    2-C.Santos extra point is GOOD, Center-48-P.Scales, Holder-16-P.O'Donnell.