Detroit Lions picks vs Bears in NFL Week 18: Pride enough to motivate?

There's not much at stake in today's 2025 season finale between the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears. A Lions win would lock in their fourth straight winning season – just the third time since World War II they've gone that long without a losing campaign. A Bears win would lock up the No. 2 seed in the NFC (and potentially at least two home playoff games, assuming they win their divisional-round opener, too).

A win would also be the 48th for Dan Campbell with the Lions, putting him alone in fourth place in franchise history. (He can't catch the leader, Wayne Fontes at 66, next season, but he should be able to make a good push.)

It would also give Lions offensive coordinator-turned-Bears coach Ben Johnson 12 wins – the second time since World War II that a Bears coach has won a dozen times in his first season. Then again, the other coach was Matt Nagy, and we know how well that turned out in the Windy City.

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Is that enough motivation for either side at Soldier Field, in addition to the pride of going out on the season as winners? Five Free Press sports writers have some thoughts.

Dave Birkett

The Lions had their way with the Bears back in September, but these teams have gone in different directions of late. The Bears run the ball as well as any team in the NFL and lead the league in takeaways. The Lions haven't done either of those things particularly well in more than a month. I don't think this game will be a blowout. The Lions have too much pride and know Ben Johnson too well to roll over in their last game of the year. But the Bears are the better team right now and will prove it on the field. The pick: Bears 31, Lions 27.

Carlos Monarrez

The only thing saving the Lions from absorbing a humiliating beatdown, like the 52-21 stomping they delivered to Chicago in September, is that the Bears will be so far ahead that Ben Johnson will pull starters midway through the fourth quarter in order to save them for the playoffs. The pick: Bears 36, Lions 19.

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Christian Romo

With the rosters as currently constructed and Chicago playing at home, the Bears should probably tap-dance over the Lions. But the Bears are only a slight favorite over the Lions, and it's probably because we don't know how much Ben Johnson will play his stars in the final game. Based on his reactions following the Bears' loss in Detroit, I think he and his players badly want to beat the Lions, even if it comes in a glorified tune-up game. And with the Lions playing some of their worst football in years, this will be the optimal time for the Bears to pounce on a suddenly dethroned rival. The pick: Bears 34, Lions 17.

Rainer Sabin

The Lions trounced Ben Johnson’s Bears in Week 2, defeating them by 31 points. But so much has changed then. Not long after that resounding loss to Detroit, the Bears took flight. The running game gained steam, an opportunistic defense began making plays and the wins started to pile up. And by Week 17, Chicago had climbed all the way to the top of the NFC North, claiming the division title. Now, the Bears will be looking to exact revenge against a fading Lions team that has lost three in a row. Expect them to accomplish that mission, as Johnson gets the last word in the regular-season finale. The pick: Bears 28, Lions 21.

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Jeff Seidel

Remember when the Lions trucked the Bears, 52-21, in Week 2? When they basically rubbed Ben Johnson’s nose in it? Yeah, I’m pretty sure the Bears do, too. I’m certain the Lions will fight hard, even in a meaningless game – yes, I was there when they went to Green Bay and won a meaningless game (for the Lions, at least) to end the 2021 season. But this isn’t about emotion or will. The Bears have just played better football than the Lions. And I gotta think Johnson is giddy about calling plays against the Lions' banged-up defense. The pick: Bears 31, Lions 17.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions predictions vs Chicago Bears in NFL Week 18