3 things we learned from the Chicago Bears, including upcoming ankle surgery for left tackle Braxton Jones

Chicago Bears coach Thomas Brown and players met with reporters Monday morning as they try to quickly move on from Sunday’s 34-17 loss to the Detroit Lions.

The Bears have just three days to recover and prepare for their Thursday Night Football game against the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field.

Here are three things we learned from Halas Hall.

1. Left tackle Braxton Jones will undergo surgery on his broken left ankle.

Brown confirmed that Jones required surgery for a broken fibula, the Tribune’s Brad Biggs reported Monday morning.

Jones’ left leg bent awkwardly in pass protection for quarterback Caleb Williams in the second quarter against the Lions, and the Bears staff placed an air puff on his leg before carrying him off the field.

Jones is out for the remainder of the season — he was placed on injured reserve Monday afternoon — and will face a months-long recovery ahead of his fourth season with the Bears. After starting 11 games last season with a neck injury, he played 12 games this year, missing two with a knee injury and one with a concussion.

Offensive tackle Larry Borom replaced Jones against the Lions. Brown said Borom was active for the game against rookie left tackle Kiran Amegadjie because Borom has the flexibility to play on the right or left side. He said versatility is important at this point with so many injured players on the line.

“We’ll see how the week goes and we’ll give all the guys a chance to compete,” Brown said when asked about Jones’ replacement.

Left back Teven Jenkins also left the game with a calf injury, although Brown said he had a “possible chance” of playing Thursday.

Week 16 photos: Detroit Lions 34, Chicago Bears 17

Williams said he thought Borom and left back Jake Curhan did a “solid job” but also said “it sucks” that Jones and Jenkins are out because he has a feel for how they play.

“You build a connection and figure out how your linemen are blocking so you kind of figure out where you can be in the pocket,” Williams said. “You find out all the different things, what they’re good at and what they’re maybe not so good at. Being able to maneuver in the pocket, you play so many snaps and downs together that you figure it out over time and through feel.”

2. Brown said “bad eyes” and “playing on the wrong foot” were two of the errors in the Lions’ long touchdown on Sunday.

The Lions took a 20-0 lead in the second quarter when wide receiver Jameson Williams raced past cornerback Tyrique Stevenson and safety Jonathan Owens and brilliantly caught Jared Goff’s 82-yard touchdown pass.

Brown said defenders’ eyes were in the wrong place during the game and Owens played flat-footed. He called it “inexcusable.”

“Again, super-fast receiver, but we need to put a roof on the top of the coverage,” Brown said.

Stevenson said there were a few things he could have done better.

“I probably could have just stayed informed and alerted our security a little bit in advance that it was coming,” Stevenson said. “I definitely had some bad eyes in bad places. But I definitely should have let security know it was coming.”

Williams’ touchdown and the Lions’ trick play were two of Sunday’s most eye-catching moments. Goff and Jahmyr Gibbs faked a fumble in the third quarter to distract Bears defenders before Goff threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Sam LaPorta.

Stevenson said that while the touchdown obviously bothered him, upon reflection he could also admit that it was “a great play.”

“It’s a scoring game against us, but we thank them for putting in the time, effort and dedication to create something like that or take something like that and implement it in the game,” Stevenson said. “They scored against us. That doesn’t suit me. But they played a great game.”

Stevenson said he would have preferred a few extra days this week to recover from a tough game by the defense in which it allowed 37 points and 475 yards. But the Bears were back in practice on Monday.

“Definitely I would have time that day to go through some of the things you need to do better, refresh your mind, let it go, but not let it go completely,” Stevenson said. “I would definitely appreciate this day, but the next one is coming.”

3. Wide receiver Rome Odunze said he doesn’t really feel the difference between a college season and his first NFL season.

Odunze, the No. 9 pick from Washington, has two games left in his rookie season. But he said so far this year it hasn’t felt all that different than in college, which put the same strain on his body.

“People say it’s a long year, but I’m embracing it and just doing everything I can to stay consistent throughout the season and continue to develop and grow,” he said. “I’m just going to focus on those things and finish the season strong.”

Odunze had four catches for 77 yards on Sunday, bringing his total to 51 catches for 701 yards and three touchdowns. He had a third-down conversion catch and two catches for fourth-down conversions.

But he also had some learning experiences with two mistakes in the first quarter. Odunze said he would work to address the issues that caused him to drop the ball due to “Rule No. 1 in football” – not turning the ball over.

Williams, who was there for the first fumble after a botched handoff with Odunze, also said he needs to get better.

“Of course we have to find a way to secure the ball, be it between me or Rome,” he said. “But I have to say that I could have given the ball a better place to get it where it needs to be. I think there was a little too much on his hip.”