The Bears’ defense has been in a season-long funk where every little mistake is costly. But against the Bills last week, rookie cornerback Kyler Gordon made one misplay right.

Gordon’s interception of quarterback Josh Allen at the goal line and 36-yard return momentarily took the Bears out of trouble in the second quarter, and was a stroke of good fortune. The Bears didn’t pay for a mistake.

“I’m not gonna tell you were were all in the right coverage there. But sometimes you do the wrong thing [and] you stumble into something,” defensive coordinator Alan Williams said. “He dropped at the right angle that he thought he should and the quarterback threw the ball and sometimes when you’re not paint-by-numbers, you can be in the right place.”

After a typical season of rookie trials, Gordon seems like he’s in the right place at the right time — reaping the rewards of some hard lessons learned earlier in the season as a slot cornerback and ready to finish his first NFL season with momentum heading into 2023. The interception against the Bills was his third of the season and his second in as many games.

“I’m slowly but surely [improving] and just elevating my game since Day 1,” Gordon said. “I feel like the trajectory is going up.”

Indeed, Gordon is in a comfort zone on multiple levels — benefitting from 13 games of NFL experience, but also at his more familiar position of outside cornerback. With Kindle Vildor on injured reserve, undrafted rookie Josh Blackwell has excelled in the slot, allowing Gordon to play outside.

“A lot of people say the same thing, [that] I look relaxed. That’s how I feel,” said Gordon, a second-round draft pick (39th overall) from Washington. “I’m comfortable all over the field. I’m just doing my job — recognizing the formations, pre-determining what I can get; going through my checks in my head; and just reading stuff. Everything is slower for me.”

It’s that kind of comfort that helped put Gordon in position to make plays, like the interception against the Bills.

“Me knowing my stuff and where I can put my eyes and understanding what I can get from the offense based off a formation,” Gordon said. “I’m able to put my eyes in a place where I know the ball’s potentially going to be. I’ve already got my antennas up and I’m alert for something. There’s a higher probability for me to make a play if they put the ball in the area.”

The Bears’ defense has struggled through much of the season — with the implementation of a new scheme under Matt Eberflus and Williams, the departure of linebacker Roquan Smith and defensive end Robert Quinn at midseason, five Week 1 starters out of the lineup and seven rookies combining for 43 starts and 3,034 snaps. The Bears are 31st in the NFL in points, 24th in yards allowed and 30th in yards allowed per play.

Both the growth of players such as Gordon and safety Jaquan Brisker — also a second-round draft pick (48th overall) — provides hope that improvement in 2023 is possible.

“It’s a process of feeling comfortable,” Williams said. “Each week you see [Gordon] getting a little bit better. In the NFL it’s a game of inches, so if you can get a little bit better each week, you start to become yourself. You stop thinking about, ‘Hey, where am I putting my feet? Where am I putting my eyes?'”

Eventually, Williams said, you transition from thinking to reacting. “Little by little he’s doing that,” Williams said. “Then you see a better product, you see a faster product.”

Playing nickel cornerback has complicated matters for Gordon. “It’s way different being inside,” Gordon said. “Some stuff transfers, but I feel like it’s two different positions. You have to learn different techniques — whether it be gaps or blitzing, the inside type of routes. It’s completely different.”

Moving to outside corner has not only made things easier for Gordon, but he believes the experience at nickel has made him a better outside corner.

“Definitely,” Gordon said. “I’ve played corner my whole life. Going from inside out, I see everything that a nickel does or what he’s gonna get. It’s just more information. It allows me to do more.”

Gordon still has a long way to go, but the Bears are encouraged that he’s showing both the versatility and play-making ability that compelled them to draft him in the second round when they arguably had more important holes to fill on offense.

“It’s going to expand him a little bit more,” Eberflus said. “He’s going to use a different skillset out there [at outside corner]. It’s just going to help him grow.

“He’s got high energy. He’s really good at his fundamentals. His techniques — he’s getting better there. And he’s a ballhawk guy. That’s why we brought him here. He’s proven that and he’s exciting to watch. I’m excited about the last two games for him.”

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Bears quarterback Justin Fields will not be thinking about the No. 1 draft pick when he takes on the Lions on Sunday. While there would be tremendous tangible benefit to the team — and him — in the Bears ending up with that selection, it’s not in his mind.

He’ll be thinking about revenge.

For most of this season, Fields has been the only thing that has given the Bears a chance. The majority of their losses have ended with the depleted defense simply collapsing and letting Fields down at the end.

His defense fell apart against the Lions in a 31-30 loss at Soldier Field last month, too, but Fields was equally responsible for the Bears blowing a 24-10 fourth-quarter lead. He had multiple opportunities to solidify victory, but had two three-and-outs, threw a pick-six and couldn’t get the Bears beyond their own 32-yard line on their final possession.

Faltering at the end tainted what would’ve been one of Fields’ best games. He ran for 147 yards on 13 carries, including a 67-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, and completed 12 of 20 passes for 167 yards and two touchdowns.

The 314 combined yards was the fourth-highest of his career, and he had a 140.0 passer rating before that brutal pick to Jeff Okudah from his own 17-yard line. Fields called it “just a dumb play” and vowed it would never happen again. Even with the interception, Fields posted a 99.4.

Why mention all of that? Because the Lions couldn’t stop Fields that day and aren’t any better equipped to do so Sunday. Fields was his own worst enemy in the defeat, and if he steers clear of any self-inflicted debacles, there’s every reason to expect a monster game.

The Lions have a shot at sneaking into the playoffs despite giving up an NFL-worst 26.7 points per game. Their defense isn’t good at anything. They’ve allowed a 97.0 passer rating for the season and 5.1 yards per carry — both third-worst.

The Lions are fresh off giving up 37 points in a loss to the lowly Panthers. With their season on the line, they let Sam Darnold put up a 121.4 passer rating and allowed two 125-yard rushers.

The Bears have so few top players left on defense that it’s hard to see them stopping anyone, but it’s a prime opportunity for Fields to feast. The Lions might score 30 points, but Fields certainly could match that.

It’ll be much easier than the last two weeks, when he went against Super Bowl contenders in the Eagles and Bills. Both of those teams are top-10 in scoring defense and are elite against the pass, and the Eagles lead the NFL in sacks.

Fields had the Bears in the game in the fourth quarter against both of those opponents and, over both games, completed 29 of 44 passes for 271 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions for a 105.4 passer rating. He also averaged 4.8 yards per carry.

That fit with his overall upward trajectory. Fields and the offense were a wreck the first four games, but since then, he has a 96.9 passer rating and the Bears have averaged 22.9 points per game. Those numbers are up from 58.7 and 16, respectively, through Week 4.

Fields was well into finding a groove the first time he played the Lions and seems even more comfortable now, even while playing with patchwork personnel around him. He completed 20 of 25 passes — albeit with two interceptions — and averaged 10.2 yards per pass in the loss to the Packers.

His performances have been imperfect, but promising. For months it has seemed like Fields was on the brink of putting it all together. If that’s really the case, the Lions present an ideal chance to prove it.

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For most of the 2010s, the Bears and Lions were easy to distinguish from each other. The Lions had the long-term answer at quarterback and the Bears had the better roster.

This year has flipped.

The Bears believe they have their quarterback of the future in Justin Fields, while the Lions have a trove of young talent at other positions.

If both teams have proven anything over the last decade-plus, it’s that neither formula is the path to winning when it matters. They’ve combined for one playoff win since 2010.

Which team, though, is better position to change that? It depends on your preferred starting point — but, for the first time in a long time, the answer might be the Lions. Their rebuild is farther along than that of the Bears, and it’s been done with care. Entering Sunday’s game at Ford Field, the Lions have four more wins and countless better, healthy, players than the Bears.

Consider:

o The Lions have drafted five players in the top 38 over the past three years. The Bears have taken one: Fields. The Lions will take at least two more this offseason — they own their own draft pick and that of the Rams, who are currently slated to pick eighth. The Bears will have a prime draft selection in 2023 — with two weeks left, they trail the Texans, who hold the first pick, by a half-game.

o The Lions have three of their own first-round picks on their offensive line — tackle Taylor Decker (2016), center Frank Ragnow (2018) and right tackle Penei Sewell (2021). The Bears have one of their own first-round picks on their entire roster: Fields.

The Bears know it takes time to build a line — “It’s hard to get high-level players at a position group all at once,” head coach Matt Eberflus said — and that it won’t all be solved even with a free-agent splurge. Bears general manager Ryan Poles is projected to have $119.4 million in 2023 cap space, while the next-closest team has $50 million less.

o The Lions have the league’s worst defense but have used their highest draft picks on defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (No. 2 overall in 2022) and cornerback Jeff Okudah (No. 3 in 2020). They’ve been inconsistent — Pro Football Focus considers Hutchinson the 30th-best edge rusher and Okudah the 74th-best corner — but represent the two positions that all modern defenses must invest in. The Bears haven’t drafted a Round 1 cornerback since 2014 or a first-round defensive end since 2012.

o The Lions boast Amon-Ra St. Brown, a former fourth-round pick who ranks seventh in the NFL with 96 catches and 10th with 1,050 yards. He isn’t even the most intriguing receiver on his own team: former Alabama star Jameson Williams, for whom the Lions traded up to draft 12th, made his NFL debut Dec. 4 after tearing his ACL during the national title game. The Bears have drafted three receivers in the top 12, ever — and the last was Kevin White.

Quarterback Jared Goff is having a resurgent year — his 98.3 passer rating is his best since his Rams went to the Super Bowl in 2018 — but won’t likely be the centerpiece of a championship team. His Super Bowl berth appearance was a rare recent time a team reached the Super Bowl without a superstar quarterback.

Fields still has a chance to, with improvement, find that stardom. His performance this season with a depleted offensive roster gives the Bears hope he’ll take off when paired with better teammates. That’s the comfort the Bears have in the face of all the above — from their lack of recent first-round picks to the fact they traded their high second-rounder to the Steelers for receiver Chase Claypool.

Even if Fields develops, he’ll need help. The Bears know that. And so do the Lions, who won little with star quarterback Matthew Stafford for 12 years, only to watch him win the Super Bowl with the Rams last year.

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The Bears will get at least three starters back Sunday against the Lions with the return of left guard Cody Whitehair, right guard Teven Jenkins and wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown. All three of them practiced in full Friday and have no game designation, meaning they’re good to go.

The Bears also could get wide receiver Chase Claypool back from a knee injury. He was limited in practice Friday and questionable for the game. Coach Matt Eberflus wouldn’t give any clarification on the likelihood of him playing.

Claypool has been out since the Dec. 4 game against the Packers. He is the Bears’ best playmaking threat since Darnell Mooney is out for the season.

Without those players, the Bears tied their franchise-long losing streak with their eighth in a row, falling 35-13 to the Bills on Saturday. At 3-12, they are heading toward their second-worst record ever.

They’re a 6.5-point underdog at the Lions on Sunday and are at risk of being swept by them in the season series for the first time since 2017. The Lions won 31-30 at Soldier Field in November.

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WASHINGTON — Sherlock Holmes is finally free to the American public in 2023.

The long-running contested copyright dispute over Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tales of a whipsmart detective — which has even ensnared Enola Holmes — will finally come to an end as the 1927 copyrights expiring Jan. 1 include Conan Doyle’s last Sherlock Holmes work.

Alongside the short-story collection “The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes,” books such as Virginia Woolf’s “To The Lighthouse,” Ernest Hemingway’s “Men Without Women,” William Faulkner’s “Mosquitoes” and Agatha Christie’s “The Big Four” — an Hercule Poirot mystery — will become public domain as the calendar turns to 2023.

Once a work enters the public domain it can legally be shared, performed, reused, repurposed or sampled without permission or cost. The works from 1927 were originally supposed to be copyrighted for 75 years, but the 1998 Copyright Term Extension Act delayed opening them up for an additional 20 years.

While many prominent works on the list used those extra two decades to earn their copyright holders good money, a Duke University expert says the copyright protections also applied to “all of the works whose commercial viability had long subsided.”

“For the vast majority — probably 99% — of works from 1927, no copyright holder financially benefited from continued copyright. Yet they remained off limits, for no good reason,” Jennifer Jenkins, director of Duke’s Center for the Study of the Public Domain, wrote in a blog post heralding “Public Domain Day 2023.”

That long U.S. copyright period meant many works that would now become available have long since been lost, because they were not profitable to maintain by the legal owners, but couldn’t be used by others. On the Duke list are such “lost” films like Victor Fleming’s “The Way of All Flesh” and Tod Browning’s “London After Midnight.”

1927 portended the silent film era’s end with the release of the first “talkie” — a film with dialogue in it. That was “The Jazz Singer,” the historic first feature-length film with synchronized dialogue also notorious for Al Jolson’s blackface performance.

In addition to the Alan Crosland-directed film, other movies like “Wings” — directed by William A. Wellman and the “outstanding production” winner at the very first Oscars — and Fritz Lang’s seminal science-fiction classic “Metropolis” will enter the public domain.

Musical compositions — the music and lyrics found on sheet music, not the sound recordings — on the list include hits from Broadway musicals like “Funny Face” and jazz standards from the likes of legends like Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, in addition to Irving Berlin’s “Puttin’ on the Ritz” and “(I Scream You Scream, We All Scream for) Ice Cream” by Howard Johnson, Billy Moll and Robert A. King.

Duke’s Center for the Public Domain highlighted notable books, movies and musical compositions entering the public domain — just a fraction of the thousands due to be unleashed in 2023:

BOOKS

— “The Gangs of New York,” by Herbert Asbury (original publication)

— “Death Comes for the Archbishop,” by Willa Cather

— “The Big Four,” by Agatha Christie

— “The Tower Treasure,” the first Hardy Boys mystery by the pseudonymous Franklin W. Dixon

— “The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes,” by Arthur Conan Doyle

— “Copper Sun,” by Countee Cullen

— “Mosquitoes,” by William Faulkner

— “Men Without Women,” by Ernest Hemingway

— “Der Steppenwolf,” by Herman Hesse (in German)

— “Amerika,” by Franz Kafka (in German)

— “Now We Are Six,” by A.A. Milne with illustrations from E.H. Shepard

— “Le Temps retrouv?,” by Marcel Proust (in French)

— “Twilight Sleep,” by Edith Wharton

— “The Bridge of San Luis Rey,” by Thornton Wilder

— “To The Lighthouse,” by Virginia Woolf

MOVIES

— “7th Heaven,” directed by Frank Borzage

— “The Battle of the Century,” a Laurel and Hardy film directed by Clyde Bruckman

— “The Kid Brother,” directed by Ted Wilde

— “The Jazz Singer,” directed by Alan Crosland

— “The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog,” directed by Alfred Hitchcock

— “Metropolis,” directed by Fritz Lang

— “Sunrise,” directed by F.W. Murnau

— “Upstream,” directed by John Ford

— “Wings,” directed by William A. Wellman

MUSICAL COMPOSITIONS

— “Back Water Blues,” “Preaching the Blues” and “Foolish Man Blues” (Bessie Smith)

— “The Best Things in Life Are Free,” from the musical “Good News” (George Gard “Buddy” De Sylva, Lew Brown, Ray Henderson)

— “Billy Goat Stomp,” “Hyena Stomp” and “Jungle Blues” (Ferdinand Joseph Morton)

— “Black and Tan Fantasy” and “East St. Louis Toodle-O” (Bub Miley, Duke Ellington)

— “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” and “Ol’ Man River,” from the musical “Show Boat” (Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern)

— “Diane” (Erno Rapee, Lew Pollack)

— “Funny Face” and “‘S Wonderful,” from the musical “Funny Face” (Ira and George Gershwin)

— “(I Scream You Scream, We All Scream for) Ice Cream” (Howard Johnson, Billy Moll, Robert A. King)

— “Mississippi Mud” (Harry Barris, James Cavanaugh)

— “My Blue Heaven” (George Whiting, Walter Donaldson)

— “Potato Head Blues” and Gully Low Blues” (Louis Armstrong)

— “Puttin’ on the Ritz” (Irving Berlin)

— “Rusty Pail Blues,” “Sloppy Water Blues” and “Soothin’ Syrup Stomp” (Thomas Waller)

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Friday, December 30, 2022

NON CONFERENCE

Monroe (WI) at Freeport, 3:30

BLOOMINGTON / NORMAL

Small Schools

Rockford Lutheran vs. Bloomington Catholic, 10:30

St. Joseph-Ogden vs. University High (Normal), 5:1

Large Schools

Wheaton-Warr. South vs. Mesa (AZ), 1:30

Sacred Heart-Griffin vs. Romeoville, 8:45

CARTHAGE COLLEGE (WI)

Zion-Benton vs. Milwaukee Science (WI), 4:30

CENTRALIA

Cahokia vs. Dyett, 11:30

Hillwood (TN) vs. Confluence (MO), 1:00

Kipp (MO) vs. Champaign Central, 10:00

Payton vs. Glenwood, 10:00

Wekiva (FL) vs. Mt. Vernon, 8:30a

Belleville West vs. Carmel, 8:30a

Marist vs. Evanston, 12:30

Ritter (MO) vs. Centralia, 2:00

13th Place, 6:00

Consolation Championship, 6:00

5th Place, 4:30

3rd Place, 7:30

Championship, 9:00

COLLINSVILLE

Mundelein vs. Althoff, 11:30

Rockford East vs. Belleville East, 6:00

DE KALB

Ogden vs. Hononegah, 9:00a

Belvidere vs. McHenry, 10:30

Dundee-Crown vs. Marshall, 12:00

Manley vs. Plainfield East, 1:30

Lincoln-Way West vs. Naperville Central, 3:00

DeKalb vs. Phillips, 4:30

Huntley vs. Guilford, 6:00

Geneva vs. East Moline, 7:30

EFFINGHAM / TEUTOPOLIS

at Effingham

Belvidere vs. Knoxville, 10:00

Dixon vs. Newton, 11:30

Charleston vs. Mattoon, 10:00

Lutheran North (MO) vs. Highland, 4:30

Oak Lawn vs. Effingham, 11:30

Brooks vs. Centennial, 3:00

St. Anthony vs. Pleasant Plains, 6:00

Teutopolis vs. Lincoln-Way East, 7:30

ELGIN

Westminster Christian vs. Round Lake, 9:00a

Bowen vs. Elgin Academy, 10:30

West Chicago vs. Mather, 12:00

King vs. Aurora Central, 3:15

Lake View vs. Raby, 1:45

Waukegan vs. Chicago Christian, 4:45

Walther Christian vs. Kennedy, 6:30

Shepard vs. Elgin, 8:00

ERIE-PROPHETSTOWN

Beecher vs. Newman, 7:30

GOLDEN GATE (FL)

Loyola vs. Fort Myers (FL), 11:30

IC CATHOLIC / WESTMONT

at IC Catholic

UC-Woodlawn vs. Alcott, 9:00a

Elmwood vs. Reavis, 10:30

South Shore vs. Eisenhower, 12:00

Latin vs. St. Edward, 4:30

Westmont vs. Fenger, 1:30

Glenbard South vs. Catalyst-Maria, 3:00

Christ the King vs. Evergreen Park, 6:00

Taft vs. IC Catholic, 7:30

JACOBS

Streamwood vs. Elk Grove, 9:00a

Jefferson vs. Marian Central, 10:30

Johnsburg vs. Grant, 12:00

Jacobs vs. South Elgin, 1:30

Cary-Grove vs. Larkin, 3:00

Bartlett vs. Prairie Ridge, 4:30

Barrington vs. HoffmanEstates, 6:00

Grayslake Central vs. Crystal Lake South, 7:30

LITTLE VILLAGE

Clemente vs. Little Village, 11:00

MAINE EAST

Argo vs. Richards (Chgo)/Sullivan, 9:00

Bulls Prep vs. Richards (Chgo)/Sullivan, 10:30

Jones vs. Crane, 12:00

Sandburg vs. Metea Valley, 4:30

Vernon Hills vs. Addison Trail, 1:30

Westinghouse vs. Ridgewood, 3:00

Leyden vs. Providence, 6:00

Niles West vs. Maine East, 7:30

PLANO

Morris vs. Newark, 9:00a

Mendota vs. Hinckley-Big Rock, 10:30

Lisle vs. Plano, 12:15

Sandwich vs. Coal City, 3:15

Ottawa vs. Streator, 1:45

Yorkville Christian vs. Northridge, 5:00

Kaneland vs. Notre Dame (Peoria), 6:30

Marmion vs. Burlington Central, 8:00

PONTIAC

Warren vs. West Aurora, 8:00a

Bloom vs. Lockport, 9:30a

New Trier vs. Pontiac, 11:00

Benet vs. Joliet West, 2:30

Curie vs. Simeon, 1:00

Consolation Championship, 4:00

5th Place, 6:00

3rd Place, 7:30

Championship, 9:00

RICH

Tinley Park vs. Thornridge, 9:00a

Thornton vs. Longwood, 10:30

Bremen vs. St. Francisde Sales, 12:00

Thornton Fr. South vs. Noll (IN), 5:00

Francis Parker vs. Agricultural Science, 1:30

Thornwood vs. De La Salle, 3:30

Hyde Park vs. Rich, 6:30

Perspectives-Lead vs. Hillcrest, 8:00

WHEELING

Prosser vs. Wheeling, 9:00a

Maine West vs. Antioch, 10:30

Buffalo Grove vs. Englewood STEM, 2:00

St. Viator vs. Niles North, 5:30

Hampshire vs. Prospect, 12:15

Deerfield vs. Notre Dame, 3:45

Neuqua Valley vs. Fremd, 7:15

Libertyville vs. Glenbrook North, 8:45

YORK

Wheaton North vs. St. Laurence, 3:00

St. Ignatius vs. Bolingbrook, 4:30

Lyons vs. Rolling Meadows, 6:00

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