Cashing in on Bears and Lions

The Detroit Lions defense can make any ailing quarterback healthy and Justin Fields should be able to flourish for fantasy owners as the fantasy playoffs wind down.

USA Today

Forget about Justin Fields' foot being stepped on or his left shoulder being separated. Forget about the Bears being a 3-12 team.

If you're fortunate enough to have Fields and are in the finals or semifinals of a fantasy league then this is a must-play week with him.

It could even be Fields' finest moment, although it would be difficult to top going toe-to-toe with Tua Tagovailoa in a record-setting day at Soldier Field.

SI fantasy expert Michael Fabiano has Fields ranked the No. 4 QB for fantasy this week but taking into account opponents, Fields must rank a No. 2 for this week behind only Patrick Mahomes because he's going against a Detroit defense that has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this year. 

Joe Burrow, ranked third, faces Buffalo. Josh Allen is ranked No. 1. Both could be restricted by defenses in that game.

Next week is a dead week for many teams who could have nothing to play for so this is the last real week when every team is playing it legit. The Eagles and Chiefs next week might be using all subs. Other teams could be doing the same.

It's not just Fields. 

This Bears and Lions game is a real fantasy treasure trove for owners fortunate enough to still have teams vying for titles and some of these players. Here's who to sit and who to start for fantasy owners in Bears vs. Lions rematch, a game that figures to be a track meet.

Start 'Em

1. Bears QB Justin Fields

The only thing that could stop Fields from piling up fantasy points is if he doesn't get enough fluid. Remember Atlanta, when he was indoors and was cramping throughout the game, especially at game's end. He said he gets an IV before games. Hopefully that's enough. It's kind of a big thing for fantasy owners if they must depend on a QB who hasn't been irrigated properly. Fields even has a chance of being able to throw to Chase Claypool this week and will have Equanimeous St. Brown back. Plus, that artificial turf is much easier to run on than frozen Soldier Field last week.

2. Lions QB Jared Goff

Of course you plug-and-play Goff. He threw for 236 yards and a touchdown outdoors to beat the Bears when they still had Jaylon Johnson and Eddie Jackson in the secondary, and his own top healthy targets besides Amon-Ra St. Brown were Tom Kennedy and Kalif Raymond. Now the Bears are using four rookies in the secondary and Goff is at home throwing to St. Brown, Josh Reynolds, Jameson Williams and DJ Chark. And Goff doesn't need to worry about a pass rush. The Bears have 18 sacks, lowest amount in the league. So he's a rhythm passer with little to disrupt his timing.

3. Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown

The Lions use St. Brown about 70% of the time in the slot and he's going against an undrafted rookie slot cornerback in Josh Blackwell who has played 92 snaps of defense in his career. Maybe St. Brown runs 100% of his plays from the slot Sunday. He really gets up to play his brother's team. In two games against Eqanimeous' teams he has 18 receptions for 228 yards. 

4. Lions WR DJ Chark

His targets are up with 25 over the last five weeks and he's making an impact down the field at 17.3 yards per catch. He'll be facing undrafted rookie corner Jaylon Jones. 

5. Bears TE Cole Kmet

Kmet is the leading Bears receiver on the year even though he won't approach his 60 catches of last season. The real reason to like Kmet for this week is his past against the Lions. In four starts against them he has three touchdown catches and 18 receptions for 182 yards.

6. Bears RB David Montgomery

He's not going to approach 1,000 yards this year but at 756 he's still a threat for rushing touchdowns, and what a receiver for a back. He's averaging 9.5 yards a catch out of the backfield and catches 86.5% of his targets. That's a better catch percentage than any starting running back who has been targeted at least once per game except for Leonard Fournette (87.2%). Depending on the type of league, an owner who made the finals or semifinals and has Montgomery would have a better primary option. He's still a real secondary back.

7. Lions RB Jamaal Williams

Since the Lions turned around their season starting with a win over Green Bay Nov. 6, they are 1-2 when they didn't rush for 100 yards. They're 6-2 overall in that stretch. The two sub-100-yarders they lost were against the Bills and last week against the Panthers. The one they won was barely a win, 31-30 over the Bears. They're going to need that rushing counter and Williams is more likely to provide some since D'Andre Swift has been trying to get past an ankle injury since forever.

8. Bears RB Khalil Herbert

Last week fizzled out for Herbert but the Bears were using their third, fourth and fifth guards to block against Buffalo's defense. The Lions gave up 320 yards rushing last week, are 28th against the run and Herbert got the cobwebs off last week after five weeks away with a hip injury. He's ready to roll on artificial turf and still is the NFL leader among backs in yards per carry.

Sit 'Em

9. Bears WR Chase Claypool

There's a lot of promise and no delivery from Claypool. Coming in during the season hasn't worked. He's the type of back who should flourish in this offense as he's big and can block besides receiver, but he also needs to be worked into the attack more and with his knee injury there hasn't been time.

10. Lions WR Jameson Williams

They don't seem to trust him for excessive targets. His speed scares Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams but there are more dependable options available in this one for Goff.

11. Lions WR Josh Reynolds

He usually finds a way to make a big catch or two against the Bears but not enough to make a fantasy impact.

Defense

These two teams don't know what that is. 

In IDP leagues, Kyler Gordon is hot. Three takeaways in two weeks and someone who might have picked him up could be tempted to play him but the Lions lead the league for fewest turnovers.

The real IDP play would be Aidan Hutchinson. He's played better than his seven sacks say. If the Lions ever get a counterbalance for the other side of the line or an interior pass rush, he'll be ruling in the NFC North.

SI SPORTS BOOK TAKING ALL BETS 

Best Bears Bets

The Spread and Total

The Line: Lions by 4 1/2. Over/under 51 1/2.

BearDigest Record: 12-3, 7-7-1 ATS.

BearDigest Pick:  Lions 34, Bears 30

The Lions have too many ways to attack the vulnerable Bears defense while the Bears are limited here to the three-headed monster in their rushing attack. The Lions also have a pass rusher. The Bears do not.

Top Prop Picks: Jamaal Williams over 48 1/2 rushing yards. There is no way the Lions ignore rushing again after getting only 45 yards on the ground in their loss last week. They have a good line and face a bad Bears run defense.

Amon-Ra St. Brown over/under receptions. It's 7 1/2. He had 10 against second-round pick Kyler Gordon and now faces underafted Josh Blackwell.

TICKETS TO SEE JUSTIN FIELDS AND THE BEARS AVAILABLE THROUGH SI TICKETS

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven