Lions defensive lineman Israel Idonije didn’t have a single tackle on Sunday, but he may have played an important part in Detroit’s win over Chicago anyway.
Some players on the Bears told Michael C. Wright of ESPN that they think Idonije, who played for the Bears from 2004 to 2012, tipped off the Lions to their stunts. According to those players, the Bears run a “power” stunt, and every time they ran it on Sunday, Lions running back Reggie Bush saw it coming and burned them on it.
The Bears have a new coaching staff this year, but head coach Marc Trestman retained defensive line coach Mike Phair, so the Bears may be doing the same things and making some of the same calls they had when Idonije played on their defensive line. So Idonije might have some information he could pass along to his new team.
But the Bears knew they were playing against one of their former teammates. They should have been prepared for the possibility that Idonije would have some information to share with his new team.