Bears think Israel Idonije gave their line calls to Lions

Some Chicago Bears players told a Chicago ESPN reporter on Sunday that they thought former Bears defensive end Israel Idonije, who now plays for the Lions, had tipped the Lions off to their stunts because every time they ran a power stunt, Reggie Bush saw it and made the most of it.

“I really think that’s ridiculous, I think it takes away from the players on the field.’’ Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. “We rushed for a lot of yards because we blocked them and Reggie Bush broke tackles. To say Reggie Bush is 8 yards behind the quarterback and he can hear what a line call is I think that’s ridiculous.’’

Bush ran for 139 yards including a 37-yard touchdown scamper.

“I’d also like to point out they signed Landon Cohen last week,’’ Schwartz said. “Landon had been here a long time and we haven’t changed our scheme since Landon was here I didn’t see that being a big difference in the game. Stuff like that comes up, it’s just the nature of the NFL.’’

"I like to concentrate on the players on the field and what happens on the field and stuff like that."

"I like to say that our guys did a good job of being in position and blocking and ran the ball well," Schwartz said. "We ran the ball for a lot of yards and it wasn't for any reason other than we blocked well and had a good scheme. Our running backs did a good job when we gave it to 'em."

Even if Idonije did tip the Lions off about the Bears' schemes it's up to the coaching staff to mix things up so whatever knowledge a former player might have is nullified. If they didn’t change the calls, knowing Idonije was on that line for 10 years, it’s just bad coaching.