The Chicago Bears will get one final chance to make some last-minute improvements before the playoffs start. They’ll end the regular season against the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field on Sunday afternoon.

These two teams find themselves in different spots since their Week 2 matchup when the Lions blew out the Bears in Detroit. Chicago (11-5) overcame an 0-2 start to the year with numerous dramatic comeback wins to take the NFC North title and earn a playoff berth. Meanwhile, Detroit (8-8) struggled to find its footing with two new coordinators and will miss the playoffs.

There’s still plenty to play for Sunday afternoon. Chicago could still become the No. 2 or No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs. Earning the higher seed would guarantee the Bears more one home game in the postseason and potentially a better path to the NFC championship game.

Sunday’s game kicks off at 3:25 p.m. on FOX. Here are the top five storylines to watch.

Keeping the offense rolling

Chicago’s offense has been on a roll recently. They’ll try to keep that momentum going heading into the playoffs.

The Bears offense has averaged 26.7 points over the past six games. Quarterback Caleb Williams has been a major reason for that. He’s thrown for at least 242 yards over the past three games and is 270 yards shy of becoming the Bears’ first 4,000-yard passer in a season.

Detroit’s defense has struggled at times to get stops. The Lions have given up an average of 24.8 points per game this season, which ranks as the ninth-most in the NFL.

Williams and the Bears won’t look past the worse defensive results or the fact that the Lions have been eliminated from the playoffs. They’re expecting a full effort from a Dan Campbell led Detroit team.

“I know they’re going to come out and fight,” Williams said. “They’ve been in this situation before where they may not have made the playoffs, but they come out and beat a team that is going to the playoffs or in the playoffs a few years ago, so they’re going to come out and fight, and we’ve got to hold our own and come out and fight and match that energy or more.”

Looking for air defense

Detroit’s offense might’ve been inconsistent at times this season. But there are still plenty of playmakers to watch out for.

Even without Bears head coach Ben Johnson as its play caller anymore, Detroit has one of the best passing attacks in the NFL. The Lions rank No. 5 in the NFL averaging 249.5 passing yards per game. Detroit quarterback Jared Goff has thrown for 4,233 yards, 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Goff has had his usual targets in wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams and tight end Sam LaPorta. But rookie wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa has been impressive at time too, including in the the first matchup between these two teams.

After giving up 303 passing yards against the 49ers, Chicago will need to find some solutions quickly to avoid a repeat performance Sunday.

“Offensively, they got a ton of weapons, really good skill position players, runners are both outstanding runners as well as being able to get out in the passing game, the quarterback is an outstanding player, he throws the ball with timing rhythm and everything they ask him to do at the quarterback position, and offensive line-wise, sounds like they may have some guys back and get a little bit more healthy up front,” Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. “When they have all their guys up front, they’re tough to deal with.”

Limiting the run

The Lions haven’t only continued to pass the ball well. They’ve also run the ball near the same level too.

Lead running back Jahmyr Gibbs is still one of the best running backs in the NFL. He’s rushed for 1,143 yards, which is ninth in the league, averages 5.1 yards per game and has scored 13 touchdowns. Gibbs earned his third Pro Bowl honor in his third season.

Meanwhile, running back David Montgomery has been a great complement for Gibbs once again. Montgomery has run for 674 yards to go along with eight touchdowns. Detroit is 15th with its 119.9 rushing yards per game average.

Chicago has struggled to stop the run at times, including Sunday’s loss. The Bears allow 135.3 rushing yards per game, the fifth-most in the NFL. They’ll need to control the line of scrimmage in order to slow down the Lions’ running attack.

“I think a lot of what they do starts in the run game, being able to run the ball effectively,” Allen said. “This Jahmyr Gibbs is a hell of a player. I think as he goes, when he’s really rolling, I think their offense really rolls. So, that’ll be a huge part of what they want to do.”

Remember last time?

Suffice to say, things got out of hand the last time the Bears played the Lions.

Detroit built a 28-14 halftime lead and continued to put it on the Bears in the second half on its ways to a 52-21 win. Detroit fans and players celebrated after the game, happy to show that they were more than Johnson’s play calling.

Players and even Johnson remembered how bad they felt in the locker room after that game. There will likely be a little revenge at play even if the Bears are focused on winning for playoff seeding.

“I think for me we obviously know what happened in that game and we again our focus is this week man,” linebacker T.J. Edwards said. “I don’t think we’re really looking at what happened before and what’s done is done. I think for us we want to go out there in front of our fans and put our brand of football on tape.”

What’s at stake

Sunday’s game will play a major role in deciding the Bears’ playoff path starting next month.

Chicago will maintain the NFC’s No. 2 seed if it beats the Lions or the Philadelphia Eagles (11-5) lose to the Washington Commanders, which will also kick off at 3:25 p.m. on Sunday. Even if the Eagles win on Sunday, the Bears would maintain the No. 2 seed with their own win because of their head-to-head tiebreaker they earned after beating the Eagles on Black Friday.

The Bears are guaranteed to play the Green Bay Packers if they earn the No. 2 seed. The Packers were locked into that spot heading into Week 18 after two consecutive losses.

“I know they’re going to come out and fight. They’ve been in this situation before where they may not have made the playoffs, but they come out and beat a team that is going to the playoffs or in the playoffs a few years ago, so they’re going to come out and fight, and we’ve got to hold our own and come out and fight and match that energy or more.”

If Chicago gets the No. 3 seed, it will either play the Los Angeles Rams or the San Francisco 49ers at Soldier Field, depending on their outcomes over the weekend. The 49ers have a chance to earn the No. 1 overall seed with a win over the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night. The Rams will either be the No. 5 or No. 6 seed and will play the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday afternoon.

“The only thing that’s being stressed is going out there to win,” linebacker Tremaine Edmunds said. “If that results in us getting the two seed then that’s what it is. But the message is going out there to win. Obviously we understand what comes behind that as far as playing in front of our fans, and that’s a huge momentum change in the playoffs but I think the biggest message is going out there and winning and putting our best foot forward to get some momentum going into the playoffs.”