Halas Intrigue podcast: Loss to Lions annoys Bears heading into the playoffs

USA NEWS January 5, 2026 6 minutes read

Patrick Finley and Jason Lieser break down the Bears’ 19-16 loss to the Lions and preview Saturday’s playoff game against the Packers.

New episodes of “Halas Intrigue” will be published regularly with accompanying stories collected on the podcast’s hub page. You can also listen to “Halas Intrigue” wherever you get your podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music.

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<div class="PagePromo-media"><a class="Link" aria-label="Bears &#x27;flat&#x27; in 19-16 loss to Lions, but coach Ben Johnson sets course to win Super Bowl" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2026/01/04/bears-flat-in-19-16-loss-to-lions-but-coach-ben-johnson-sets-course-to-win-super-bowl">

























<img class="Image" alt="BEARS-010526-33.jpg" width="490" height="328" data-src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b7aa5ad/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5642x3777+0+0/resize/490x328!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fb5%2Fcc%2F8f4f017140d5be657222cc83065a%2Fjohnson-14.jpg" data-lazy-load="true" src="image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzMjhweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=">

<div class="PagePromoB-content"> <div class="PagePromo-category"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears">Bears</a> </div> <div class="PagePromo-title"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2026/01/04/bears-flat-in-19-16-loss-to-lions-but-coach-ben-johnson-sets-course-to-win-super-bowl">Bears 'flat' in 19-16 loss to Lions, but coach Ben Johnson sets course to win Super Bowl</a> </div> <div class="PagePromo-description">Caleb Williams struggled until a late rally. The defense couldn’t get off the field. Johnson was annoyed but said his team is capable of winning four in a row in the playoffs and capturing the championship.</div> <div class="PagePromo-byline"><div class="PagePromo-date"> [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] <span data-date> </span> <span class="dot"></span></div> <div class="PagePromo-author"> <span>By </span><strong><a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/jason-lieser">Jason Lieser

<div class="PagePromoB-content"> <div class="PagePromo-category"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears">Bears</a> </div> <div class="PagePromo-title"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2026/01/04/bears-lions-quarterback-caleb-williams-breaks-erik-kramer-single-season-passing-record">Bears' Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams exasperated by offense, vow to channel frustration in playoffs</a> </div> <div class="PagePromo-description">Johnson said the Bears “can’t dig ourselves in a hole like that” — a 16-0 deficit after three quarters</div> <div class="PagePromo-byline"><div class="PagePromo-date"> [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] <span data-date> </span> <span class="dot"></span></div> <div class="PagePromo-author"> <span>By </span><strong><a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/patrick-finley">Patrick Finley

<div class="PagePromoB-content"> <div class="PagePromo-category"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears">Bears</a> </div> <div class="PagePromo-title"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2026/01/04/bears-back-into-no-2-playoff-seed-in-nfc-will-host-rival-packers-in-wild-card-game">Bears get No. 2 playoff seed, host rival Packers in wild-card game Saturday at 7 p.m. on Prime Video, Fox 32</a> </div> <div class="PagePromo-description">The Bears lost 19-16 to the Lions, but secure the No. 2 seed because of the Eagles’ loss to the Commanders.</div> <div class="PagePromo-byline"><div class="PagePromo-date"> [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] <span data-date> </span> <span class="dot"></span></div> <div class="PagePromo-author"> <span>By </span><strong><a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/jason-lieser">Jason Lieser