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DETROIT -- It is perhaps an odd thing to feel happy for being honored about being injured, yet that's exactly how Detroit Lions wide receiver Nate Burleson feels.

Everyone is injured at some point playing professional football and most of those guys get nothing for it but pain, heartache and the hope to one day return to playing.

So for Burleson to win the Ed Block Courage Award for the second time Tuesday after returning from a broken leg last season, it actually does mean a lot.

"A lot of people see athletes get injured and they just expect us back," Burleson said Tuesday prior to the dinner at Ford Field. "The one thing I can appreciate about the courage award is the journey that goes from the time you're injured to the time you actually make it back on the field. Not just the physical rehabilitation but the emotional. That's the toughest part.

"There's times when we can sit here and smile in front of the cameras and talk to you all day long, but we don't often tell you about the times we're questioning every decision we ever made, when we're thinking about the last route we ran. Just trying to get a grasp on reality, emotionally. I think, for this award, I'm kind of able to relive all that and appreciate everybody who voted for me and making it back."

Burleson has been honored for injuries to his legs both times. His first Courage Award came in Seattle, when he returned from a torn ACL. The reason he received the award Tuesday was coming back from a broken leg against Chicago last season.

Even with his broken forearm suffered in a one-car crash last week, he is not planning on becoming a three-time winner. Instead, he's trying to return as fast as possible.

He already has the player he'll likely vote for next season already set up in his head.

"I'm not strategically trying to set myself up to win it. I'm trying to get back ASAP," Burleson said. "This could just be a small glitch in the season. We'll do weeks instead of months or even a season. But yeah, I'm definitely not trying to win it.

"I think Jason (Jones), and what he's went through already, I've seen him in the locker room today with a smile on his face and I could tell that there's some tears behind that. I can tell he wants to be on the field and he probably has my vote already."

Jones ruptured the patellar tendon in his left knee against Washington last month, ending his season.

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Kris Durham picked himself up off the Ford Field turf, looked around and for a brief second, thought he might have gotten into the end zone. After all, he was in there.

So were a couple of his teammates.

But their efforts to push Durham in on a 12-yard reception during the second quarter of Detroit’s 40-32 win against Chicago was a yard from a score, a yard from the second touchdown of his career and his first since the last time the Lions played the Bears at home.

He didn’t get in. But one play later, his quarterback, Matthew Stafford, did.

“Yeah, yeah, I wanted it,” Durham said. “I thought Dom (Raiola) and those guys really did a good job of getting me in the end zone but we got the touchdown. Since Matthew got it, I think he owes me another throw since he got the touchdown.”

Durham can joke about it now after receiving his most action and most targets this season for Detroit. This is how it has been for the native Georgian since he arrived in the NFL in 2011.

Be the fill-in when another receiver goes down, be it for Nate Burleson (now twice) or Patrick Edwards. Last Sunday was one of the few times when Durham entered a week knowing he’ll have an expanded role in Detroit's offense.

Burleson was out. With Edwards still hobbled with an ankle injury, Detroit was down to Calvin Johnson, Ryan Broyles and Durham as its main wide receivers. He played in 92 percent (61 of 66) of Detroit’s snaps Sunday -- two snaps less than Johnson and 20 more than Broyles. His performance mirrored his newfound playing time, catching three passes for 58 yards -- the most yardage he’s ever had in a NFL game.

“It gives me some confidence,” Durham said. “I think it gives Matthew some confidence in me. I was in the right place at the right time and made good throws, good catches.”

Durham’s extended action, though, was accentuated by what he did at the end of the game. He fielded both of Chicago’s onside kicks successfully, even if it is a bit more challenging than it may appear.

The receiver’s main focus is the ball and how it is going to come off the kicker’s foot -- something he compares to an infielder having to prepare at all times for bad hops on ground balls.

But Chicago kicker Robbie Gould makes it a little bit more challenging with some of his own deception.

“The way he approached the ball and the way he kicked it was pretty impressive,” Durham said. “He was running like he was kicking toward their right, our left, and he almost swung his leg across his body and kicked it back.

“It was impressive. I was impressed. Especially on the first one. I’m taught to stand my ground and wait for the ball to be kicked. When he approached it, I was like, ‘all right, this is going to Calvin.’ Then all of a sudden I see it kicking towards me.”

So he did what he always does in onside situations. He attacks the ball and tries his best to cover it up.

The first one, he said, was easy. It came right to him cleanly. The second one went “end-over-end” and took a weird bounce -- Durham said he took bad bounces off his shoulder a couple of times as a shortstop growing up -- forcing him to smother it before it caromed oddly.

As he did, he cradled the ball and protected it with his back. That’s when Chicago linebacker Jon Bostic came in and hit him with his helmet in his back, drawing the ire of Detroit coach Jim Schwartz.

Durham said Tuesday he’s fine and doesn’t really care if Bostic is fined for the hit. His reasoning is simple: Detroit won, so why should he care. And Durham’s teammates noticed his play.

“I thought Durham played extremely well (Sunday),” Detroit running back Reggie Bush said after the game. “He was a huge reason why we converted some of those third downs.”

Or as Durham said, he’s a team guy. He’s patient. He’s just waiting for moments like these -- always waiting. He waited in Detroit. Waited during his time at Georgia, when the favorite moment of his football career was a touchdown pass caught against rival Georgia Tech as a senior in 2010.

He’s always waited. In college, he didn’t catch more than 20 passes in a season until his senior year. In the pros, he’s seen most of his action when another player has been hurt.

“Some guy can go down in the pre-game, some guy could be sick,” Durham said. “You never know what is going to happen. There’s always different variables that can go wrong so you have to be ready.”

When Detroit needed him Sunday, he was.

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Detroit Lions wide receiver Nate Burleson, who broke both bones in his left forearm in a one-car crash last week, published pictures of the interior of the car Tuesday afternoon.

Pizza included.

I'm releasing these pix for 2 reasons: 1) I walked away from a totalled vehicle #Blessed 2) I have to… http://t.co/87oB5sxLsI

— Nathaniel E Burleson (@Nate13Burleson) October 1, 2013

On his instagram account, where he posted the pictures of the Happy's Pizza boxes and the slices thrown about the car, he wrote this: "I'm releasing these pix for 2 reasons: 1) I walked away from a totalled (sic) vehicle #Blessed 2) I have to hear all the pizza jokes...lol I'll start-Yes I am the 5th Ninja Turtle. #LovePizza #LetTheJokesBegin"

Burleson, who was with the Lions on the sideline for their 40-32 win over Chicago on Sunday, is receiving the Ed Block Courage Award at a dinner Tuesday night in Detroit for his return from a broken leg last season.

Each day this week, we’ll look at one of the closer calls the Lions had during their 22-game losing streak in Wisconsin.

Date: Oct. 3, 2010
Score: Green Bay 28, Detroit 26
Records at the time: Packers (3-1), Lions (0-4)

What happened: This might have been the most unpredictable of all of Detroit’s losses in Green Bay over the years. If anything, that the game was as close as it ended up being is the biggest surprise of all.

The Lions were without starting quarterback Matthew Stafford, who separated his shoulder in the opening week of the season. So Detroit went to Green Bay with Shaun Hill as its quarterback.

And Hill almost led the Lions to a win.

Hill completed 34 of 54 passes for 331 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in the game. He also rushed four times for 53 yards.

But the same issues that plagued the Lions over the years kept them from winning. They had 13 penalties for 102 yards and they couldn’t finish off drives. After a Charles Woodson interception return in the third quarter gave Green Bay a 28-14 lead, the Lions scored on four drives.

The problem was, they didn’t score a touchdown on any of them.

Even then, Detroit had two major chances. The first came on its final drive, when the Lions drove to the Green Bay 37-yard line before Hill threw two incomplete passes to Calvin Johnson before having to punt with 6:32 left.

Then the Lions' defense couldn’t stop Green Bay running back John Kuhn. Kuhn ran the ball seven times on the Packers’ final drive and the Lions only put Green Bay in a third down once on the drive. When they did -- with 55 seconds left -- Kuhn ran up the middle for 8 yards to seal the win.

An interesting nugget in this game was two of the team’s top three targeted receivers were tight ends. Brandon Pettigrew, who led the Lions with eight catches for 91 yards, saw 11 targets -- the same as Johnson. Tony Scheffler was thrown to 10 times, catching six passes for 63 yards.

How the season finished: The Lions, who were 0-4 after losing at Green Bay, finished at 6-10 in their second season under Jim Schwartz. They had won their final four games of the season -- including a win over Green Bay at Ford Field that December. The Packers, meanwhile, made the playoffs as the No. 6 seed and ended up beating Pittsburgh, 31-25, to win the Super Bowl.

Every week, we’ll take a look at what offensive formations the Lions ran during their last game.

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- If there was a question of how Detroit would handle its offense after the injury to Nate Burleson, the answer ended up being more complicated than one player.

It was multi-faceted.

Detroit used a lot of wide receiver Ryan Broyles. Receiver Kris Durham saw significant action again. And the Lions ran some two running back and two tight end sets. I was able to catch 62 of Detroit’s 66 offensive plays Sunday against Chicago and here’s an approximate rundown of the formations the Lions ran.

Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end -- 14
1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end -- 5
Shotgun 2 running backs/2 wide receivers/1 tight end (RB slot right) -- 4
Shotgun Empty 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (RB slot left) -- 4
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receiver/1 tight end (stack two left) -- 3
Shotgun 1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight ends -- 3
Shotgun Empty 1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight ends -- 3
1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (stack two left) -- 2
1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight ends -- 2
Pistol 1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight ends (TE off-set backfield) -- 2
Shotgun 1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight ends (TE slot left) -- 2
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (TE slot right) -- 2
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (trips left) -- 2
1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (stack two right) -- 1
1 running back/2 wide receivers/1 tight end (6 OL) -- 1
1 running back/1 wide receiver/3 tight ends (TE out wide) -- 1
2 running backs/2 wide receivers/1 tight end (RB slot right) -- 1
Pistol 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end -- 1
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (stack two left, stack two right) -- 1
Shotgun 2 running back/2 wide receivers/1 tight end(RB slot left) -- 1
Shotgun 2 running back/2 wide receivers/1 tight end (stack two left) -- 1
Shotgun 1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight end(TE slot right) -- 1
Shotgun 1 running back/2 wide receivers/2 tight end (TE wide right) -- 1
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (trips right) -- 1
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (stack two right) -- 1
Shotgun 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (offset TE backfield) -- 1
Shotgun Empty 1 running back/3 wide receivers/1 tight end (RB wide right) -- 1

A weekly examination of the Lions’ ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 24 | Last Week: 16 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

Welcome to the top 10, Detroit. The Lions haven’t been here since the last week of the 2011 season -- also the last season Detroit made the playoffs. Since then, Detroit has been as low as 28th (the end of last season) and mostly lived in the middle of the Power Rankings pack.

But a win over Chicago this past weekend gives the Lions an early first-place hold in the NFC North and some confidence heading into Green Bay on Sunday. The thing is, these Lions are appearing more legitimate by the week. They have two big-play threats on offense in Calvin Johnson and Reggie Bush, an accurate quarterback in Matthew Stafford and an offensive line that is blocking well for both the running and passing games.

The key has been the Lions' defense. After failing to intercept a pass from Jay Cutler the past two seasons, they picked off the Bears quarterback three times on Sunday. The defensive line also allows for defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham to scheme well in the back seven. Detroit, more and more, looks like a playoff contender.

The guys over at Pro Football Focus and ESPN Insider took a look this week at some of the top pass-rushing teams in the NFL. It should come as no surprise the Lions made this list.

Detroit has done a good job getting to quarterbacks with either hurries or sacks this season and it didn't matter if it was a more traditional pocket passer (Carson Palmer) or one of the league's most mobile quarterbacks (Robert Griffin III).

Ndamukong Suh is the key player in all of this as offensive lines often will look at the fourth-year pro first and deal with the rest of the Lions' talented line later.

For more analysis from Pro Football Focus, check out the entire post.

The numbers are, frankly, staggering.

Detroit has the best third-down defense in the NFL, yielding conversions just 21.3 percent of the time this season.

Even Lions coach Jim Schwartz was impressed with that number.

“We certainly spent a lot of time on third down and we want to get off the field on third down,” Schwartz said Monday. “It’s just the rate we’re going at now is pretty tough to sustain.

“We have guys that rush. We have some guys in the back end that can get the ball. We have some guys that have played pretty smart and matched up routes. I think the combination of the two, we have blitzed from time-to-time I think that’s been effective when we have.”

Third down defense is merely one reason why Detroit is 3-1. Here are some other interesting numbers contributing to the Lions’ 40-32 win Sunday over the Bears. Statistics and figures from ESPN Stats & Information were used in compiling this post. Follow ESPN Stats & Information on Twitter @ESPNStatsInfo

121 -- Yards gained by Reggie Bush on Sunday between the tackles.

81 -- Percentage of Bush’s rushes this season between the tackles, at 5.7 yards gained per rush.

8.9 -- Average yards needed for a first down for Chicago on third downs Sunday.

1 -- Third downs converted by Chicago on Sunday in 13 attempts.

9.8 -- percent of the time Detroit blitzed Jay Cutler on Sunday, the lowest blitz percentage in the NFL last week.

5 -- Targets to wide receivers other than Calvin Johnson (Johnson had 10).

20 -- Targets to Detroit’s running backs and tight ends.

2.36 -- Points per offensive drive for Detroit.

28.4 -- Average yards gained per drive for the Lions. This is somewhat skewed because the Lions only had an average of 57.1 yards to go for a touchdown Sunday.

46.7 -- Percentage Chicago went three-and-out on Sunday against Detroit.

Good morning and ROOOOAAARRR!!!!

The Detroit Lions might need a wide receiver. So the team is apparently at least taking a peek at a known commodity.

The Lions apparently brought in Matt Willis, who the team cut in August, last week for workouts according to multiple reports. While it is tough to read what this might mean for Detroit other than it has a lack of numbers at wide receiver with Nate Burleson out indefinitely and Patrick Edwards still returning from an ankle injury, at least checking out options at the position makes sense.

And Willis is a guy Detroit is familiar with. He had nine catches for 129 yards and a touchdown during the preseason with a penchant for making difficult receptions.

So at least he's a guy on the Lions' radar -- and he probably was never really off of it -- if they decide they need an extra pass catcher to go with Calvin Johnson, Kris Durham, Ryan Broyles, Brandon Pettigrew, Tony Scheffler and Joseph Fauria.

And now a look from around the Interwebs at the best of Lions coverage:

• Starting here, with an inside the play look at how Detroit broke open Reggie Bush's 37-yard touchdown run.
• Rashean Mathis didn't suffer a concussion and Jim Schwartz calls Chicago's call-tipping accusations "ridiculous." This week's Rookie Report and Upon Further Review of the win over Chicago. And lastly, the start of a look a Detroit's closest losses to Green Bay during its 22-game losing streak in Wisconsin.
• Wide receiver Kris Durham produced Sunday, writes Dave Birkett in the Detroit Free Press. And Drew Sharp from the Free Press wonders if the Lions can do to Green Bay what they did to Chicago.
• Larry Warford is turning into a big piece of the Detroit offensive line, when he's not playing bass, writes Josh Katzenstein in the Detroit News.
• Three things Kyle Meinke of MLive learned about the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
• Dave Dye from Fox Sports Detroit says there is cautious optimism around these Lions.

DETROIT -- Reggie Bush's big 37-yard touchdown run in the second quarter of Sunday’s 40-32 win over the Chicago Bears almost didn’t happen.

Bush fumbled the play before and the ball was recovered by Detroit receiver Calvin Johnson, extending the Lions drive with 2:52 remaining in the first half.

The Lions went to the line on the next play, calling another handoff to Bush. Quarterback Matthew Stafford was in shotgun with Bush a step behind him and to his right. Center Dominic Raiola saw something in the Chicago defense that told him to make a call with his veteran left guard, Rob Sims.

“I saw a weak dog and I saw a nickel coming off the edge,” Raiola said. “We said all week we wanted to hit one right into the mouth of their blitz and that’s really what it was.

“It was a call we practiced all week and we hit it.”

Raiola told Sims to engage the defensive end, Julius Peppers. In doing so -- and getting a good push on Peppers out to the left, he almost made it appear as if he and left tackle Riley Reiff were doubling Peppers on the snap.

They weren’t, as Reiff’s man, linebacker James Anderson, blitzed far on his side. This opened up the first part of a massive hole for Bush, who by the time he reached the line of scrimmage had almost the entire width between the hashmarks to run through and make his initial cut.

In the pre-snap, Bears defensive tackle Nate Collins was initially lined up right over Raiola, but on the snap he slid over to engage right guard Larry Warford. Warford sealed Collins away from the hole.

This allowed Raiola a clean path to the second level, where he was able to block linebacker Lance Briggs.

“We were working on that,” Sims said. “We knew they were going to try and slant Julius and we just, Dom made a good call. Dom told me to go out to (Peppers) and I did and we caught them in it.

“That’s the thing with them, they are really good at moving and when you can catch them in it, you can make some hay. And Reggie don’t need much.”

Bush had a wide open lane to run through. He ran almost right at the Raiola-Briggs block before cutting back to the right side and into the second and third levels of the defense.

It appeared as if defensive end Cornelius Washington was the man who was supposed to mark up Bush at the snap, but he was on the edge of the defense and looked like he hesitated on the snap out of the backfield and ended up chasing Bush from behind. He had a chance to tackle him, but missed.

Then Bush made another quick cut right and -- this is really what made the run -- jumped over a diving Major Wright. Had Wright kept his feet, he would have had a better shot at the Detroit running back.

Once Bush made that move, he had one more assist. Wide receiver Ryan Broyles put a good seal block on Chicago cornerback Tim Jennings to give Bush a deep crease in the secondary.

Jennings would end up almost catching up to Bush, but those few extra strides helped turn the play into a touchdown.

“A sweet run,” Stafford said. “It was a play that honestly we had been working on in practice all week knowing they were going to blitz us, which they always do.

“Instead of getting out of it, just running right into it. Dom made a great call up front, (Brandon) Pettigrew had a great block to seal off the back side and let Reggie do the rest.”

Letting Bush do the rest is becoming a common theme for the Lions these days. Detroit’s offensive line had done such a good job against Chicago on Sunday, the 37-yard touchdown was merely one of the big runs Bush was able to find.

The touchdown was the longest run of the day for Bush, who had four rushes of 14 yards or more and 139 yards overall.

“Reggie Bush is special,” Wright told reporters after the game. “He has speed. He can shake you. He can do everything.”

Each day this week, we’ll look at one of the closer calls the Lions had during their 22-game losing streak in Wisconsin.

Date: Jan. 1, 2012
Score: Packers 45, Lions 41
Records: Packers (15-1), Lions (10-6)

What happened: Green Bay sat most of its key players, having already wrapped up home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, giving the Lions a chance to clinch their own playoff fortunes as well.

And Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford tried to bring the Lions a No. 5 seed instead of a No. 6 seed by throwing for 520 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions -- one of the better passing games in Detroit history.

Here was the problem.

Then-Packers backup quarterback Matt Flynn matched him. Flynn threw for 480 yards, six touchdowns and one interception. Flynn played because Green Bay sat starters Aaron Rodgers, James Starks, Randall Cobb, Bryan Bulaga and Greg Jennings on offense and Clay Matthews and Charles Woodson on defense.

Both quarterbacks had passer ratings over 100 and QBRs over 84.

The Lions did a lot right in that game. They forced a safety, held Green Bay under 4 yards a carry and outgained the Packers. They even scored a touchdown to take the lead -- a 12-yard pass from Stafford to tight end Tony Scheffler -- with 2:39 left to take a 41-38 lead.

But for Detroit there is something about winning in Green Bay that has been impossible since 1991 and the Packers went 80 yards in eight plays over 1 minute, 29 seconds to score what turned into the game-winning touchdown from Flynn to Jermichael Finley.

In perhaps one of the closer calls of the last 22 tries for Detroit, the Lions actually had the ball on the Green Bay 37-yard line when Stafford threw an interception on a pass intended for Nate Burleson with 25 seconds left to seal the Packers win and the streak.

If you’re curious, Detroit will have nine starters from that game on the field Sunday -- Stafford, Scheffler, tight end Brandon Pettigrew, wide receiver Calvin Johnson, offensive linemen Dominic Raiola and Rob Sims, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and linebackers Stephen Tulloch and DeAndre Levy.

How did their seasons finish: Instead of facing the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants, the Lions traveled to New Orleans and were blown out, 45-28. Green Bay didn’t win another game that season, either, being beaten by the Giants at Lambeau Field in the divisional round of the playoffs, 37-20.

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Detroit Lions coach Jim Schwartz scoffed at the notion former Chicago Bears defensive lineman Israel Idonije tipped off defensive line calls to his new team, the Lions on Sunday.

The Lions allowed only one sack and rushed for 159 yards in their 40-32 win over Chicago.

“Yeah, I really think that’s ridiculous,” Schwartz said. “I think it takes away from the players on the field. We rushed for a lot of yards because we blocked them and Reggie Bush broke tackles and things like that.

“To say Reggie Bush is eight yards behind the quarterback and that he can hear what I line call is, you know, I think that’s ridiculous.”

Idonije played the past nine seasons for the Bears before coming to Detroit in the offseason. Chicago changed coaching staffs after last season, replacing Lovie Smith with Marc Trestman.

“I think they had a good game plan for us in the run game. They have Israel Idonije over there, who was a long time player for us, and who also happens to really know our defense,” Chicago safety Chris Conte said Sunday. “So they really had a great scheme going. But we just have to have a better effort individually. That’s all there is to it.”

At least one Bears player told ESPN.com’s Michael C. Wright that Detroit broke a lot of its biggest runs when the Bears called a “power” stunt, switching their routes to try and mess with the offensive line.

On 97.1 The Ticket on Monday evening, Idonije addressed the Bears' claims.

"I have two thoughts. First, it just says a lot about the preparation and execution of our offense to go out there and just to be able to deliver and dominate that defense the way they did such that they thought, 'They're getting some sort of inside information because they're executing so efficiently,'" Idonije said according to MLive. "Secondly, I'm a Detroit Lion, so there is no such thing as insider information. This is my team; this is my family."

Detroit and Chicago play again at Soldier Field on Nov. 10.

A review of four hot issues from the Detroit Lions' 40-32 win over the Chicago Bears:

First place: This is, without question, a big deal for the Lions. While Detroit might have matching 3-1 records with the Bears, it has beaten Chicago, and that means first place in the NFC North for now. It also sets up what could be the ultimate statement game for the Lions on Sunday at Green Bay against the Packers. Detroit has not won there since 1991 -- and if they pulls it off, the Lions might take a step into being considered a major contender in the NFL this season.

But that’s still six days away. For now, first place in a division it has never won should sit pretty strong with Detroit a month into the season.

Secondary concerns: There’s still a bunch to learn here throughout the week, but both of Detroit’s starting cornerbacks, Chris Houston and Rashean Mathis, were knocked out of Sunday’s game by injury. Mathis insisted he passed the two concussion tests that were given to him Sunday, so that could bode well for his return against the Packers. Houston left Sunday’s game with a leg injury -- he was battling a hand injury during the week -- and his status for Green Bay will be a big issue. He is Detroit’s top cornerback, and he’ll be needed against Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. Going into a major game without him will be dicey.

The dominance of Ndamukong Suh: The fourth-year defensive tackle out of Nebraska is playing the best football of his career. He had his best game, statistically, this season by sacking Jay Cutler twice. One of the sacks forced a fumble that led to a Nick Fairley touchdown, after which Fairley knocked Suh down in the ensuing celebration.

Much was made last week of Suh’s matchup against Bears rookie Kyle Long on Sunday. Instead, Suh saw double-teams most of the game and still pretty well dominated the rookie.

“He’s a grown man,” Long told MLive.com after the game. “That’s a grown man I played against [Sunday].”

As written about a lot here in the past seven days, Suh’s ability to control an offensive line opens things up for Fairley, and ends Ziggy Ansah and Willie Young in a way few other defensive tackles can replicate.

Big game for Brandon Pettigrew: The tight end has been criticized in the past for his inability to hang on to the ball in critical situations. Even his coach, Jim Schwartz, said he has to catch better in traffic. Quarterback Matthew Stafford made Pettigrew a priority Sunday by targeting him seven times. The bigger deal? Pettigrew caught all seven passes for 54 yards. If Pettigrew can do this consistently, it gives Detroit three tight ends who can make plays, an advantage as the season continues on.

Each week, we’ll take a look at how the Detroit Lions' rookies fared in the prior week’s game, along with their overall stats and trends for the season.

By now, Detroit’s rookies seem to be settling into potential roles.

For some, this means a spot as an entrenched starter like Ziggy Ansah, Larry Warford and Sam Martin. For others, it means a matchup-based scenario, like tight end Joseph Fauria.

Yet others still, like Darius Slay and Devin Taylor, there is still a figuring out of where their exact slot on the Lions will be in the future.

DE Ziggy Ansah (first round, BYU): By now, Ansah has become a consistent part of the Detroit defense. He’s an entrenched starter on the same line as Ndamukong Suh, Nick Fairley and Willie Young, and has become a good speed-rusher a month into his first NFL season. Ansah’s numbers were down Sunday from prior weeks, as he only had one tackle, one pass defended and didn’t hit Bears quarterback Jay Cutler at all, but teams are starting to notice him more. Ansah played 68 percent of Detroit’s defensive snaps (49 of 72), and that is in the same range of the past two weeks -- 62 percent against Washington and 70 percent against Arizona. The number of snaps also remained the same, as he has now averaged 49 snaps over the past three games.

CB Darius Slay (second round, Mississippi State): When Rashean Mathis went down with a head injury in the first quarter, Slay returned to playing cornerback for Detroit. He showed improvement in his first substantive action since being benched, making seven tackles and defending one pass. He played in 88 percent of Detroit’s defensive snaps (63 of 72) and every snap once Mathis went down. He also played 14 snaps on special teams, including kick coverage.

RG Larry Warford (third round, Kentucky): Warford continued his strong play. He has played every offensive snap for the Lions the first month of the season (66 of 66 on Sunday) and has seamlessly made the transition to the NFL. As a group, the offensive line only allowed Matthew Stafford to be hit once and opened large holes for running backs Reggie Bush and Joique Bell. Also, with three wins in his first month as an NFL starter, he has more wins than he did during his final year at Kentucky.

DE Devin Taylor (fourth round, South Carolina): When Jason Jones went down for the season, it opened up a spot for Taylor in the defensive end rotation. He played 17 percent of the defensive snaps (12 of 72), mostly in the second half, and also played five special teams snaps. He hurried the quarterback once. Expect these numbers to increase a little as he continues to work his way into the rotation.

P Sam Martin (fifth round, Appalachian State): Martin only had to punt three times Sunday, with a gross average of 50 yards and a net of 37.7 yards. He placed one inside the 20-yard line and had one touchback. His net punting yards dropped again this week (was 40.7 yards last week) but considering the special teams were dealing with Devin Hester, that isn’t surprising. He appeared happy with his coverage units, tweeting positively about them after the game:

 

RB Theo Riddick (sixth round, Notre Dame): With Reggie Bush back, Riddick’s role in the offense dropped dramatically as expected. He took three offensive snaps, being targeted by Stafford once. He continued to make a contribution on coverage and return units, playing 19 special teams snaps.

TE Joseph Fauria (undrafted, UCLA): Fauria went from a shoutout on Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday to a limited role in Detroit’s offense on Sunday. Fauria’s targets and number of snaps will probably vary based on opponent and red-zone opportunities from here on out. He played 20 percent of the offensive snaps (13 of 66) but was not targeted at all. His percentage of snaps, however, was the highest of his four career games. He also got in on six special teams plays.
A brief look at Fauria’s tracking:
Week 1 -- three targets, three catches, one touchdown, 14 percent of snaps (11 plays). Week 2 -- no targets, no catches, 10 percent of snaps (six plays).
Week 3 -- three targets, one catch, one touchdown, 18 percent of snaps (12 plays).
Week 4 -- no targets, no catches, 20 percent of snaps (13 plays)

OT LaAdrian Waddle (undrafted, Texas Tech): Waddle again only played special teams for Detroit, getting in on eight snaps with the field goal team.

Good morning and RROOOOOAAARRR!!!!

DETROIT -- Darius Slay was headed toward another week of special teams duty, most likely watching almost every defensive play from the bench.

Then veteran Rashean Mathis, who had replaced him in the starting lineup against Washington after coming in for him the previous two weeks, went down with what was thought to be a concussion.

Suddenly, Detroit was leaning on a rookie again.

This time, however, Slay held his own playing the final three quarters as one of Detroit's cornerbacks.

"I could have did a little better with the fade, but you know, he made a good play on me," Slay said. "I had my hands on the ball but he just, he was overpowering.

"Other than all that, I thought I played a good, solid game. I didn't miss no key tackles and made all the tackles I was supposed to. Made a good play in the back of the end zone, got us off and held them to three points. I think I did pretty decent and can only get better."

The fade Slay is referring to came late in the game, when Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler appeared to pick on the rookie. But otherwise, the Mississippi State product played well in his first defensive action since the second week of the season.

He made seven tackles and broke up a pass. He also didn't get rattled when he was hit by an object thrown from the stands in the second quarter.

All told, it was a net positive day for Slay.

And now here's a look from at the rest of the Lions coverage from a big Sunday in Detroit:

• Starting with our coverage, beating the Bears is a big deal for the Lions and Detroit coach Jim Schwartz goes off on player safety. Don't be surprised if you hear more about this during the week. Some Locker Room Buzz and Rapid Reaction to the win. And meet Matthew Stafford -- NFL record holder.
• Drew Sharp writes that Stafford's efficiency keeps Detroit on target. Dave Birkett of the Free Press grades the Lions out well from Sunday.
• The Lions defense does a good job on Jay Cutler, writes Josh Katzenstein of the Detroit News. Reggie Bush has a big game again for the Lions, writes Chris McCosky in the News.
• Justin Rogers from MLive grades the Lions and both Rogers and Kyle Meinke say Detroit is a NFC North contender.
• Gregg Doyel from CBSSports.com looked at Reggie Bush and called his impact in Detroit "Enormous. Deafening."
• Paula Pasche from the Oakland Press writes about Brandon Pettigrew's day.