Anthony Miller finds his groove just in time

DETROIT — It didn’t start out as the best game of Bears receiver Anthony Miller’s NFL career.

‘‘What I’m thinking about is the first half I had; I think it was horrible,’’ Miller said when he was asked about his nine-catch, 140-yard day in the Bears’ 24-20 victory Thursday against the Lions at Ford Field. ‘‘I think it’s one of the worst halves I’ve had since I’ve been playing in the league.’’

Miller had a slow start against the Lions, most notably when he dropped an eight-yard pass from quarterback Mitch Trubisky early in the second quarter. The play initially was ruled a fumble, with the Lions recovering. Upon review, however, it was ruled an incomplete pass. He later was called for an illegal-formation penalty on a failed fourth-down play that turned the ball over.

‘‘I was in the right spots, but it was just like I wasn’t in my groove,’’ Miller said. ‘‘But I just told myself, ‘Man, just do what you know you could do.’ And that’s what I did.’’

Miller has had his ups and downs in his two seasons with the Bears and keeps finding ways to restore their faith in him. But he did it like never before against the Lions to spark the Bears to a come-from-behind victory.

Miller sparked the go-ahead touchdown drive in the fourth quarter with three receptions, including two crucial third-down conversions.

‘‘They were dimes,’’ Miller said. ‘‘The ball’s where it’s supposed to be, and all I had to do was make the play.’’

Miller’s 35-yard catch over cornerback Justin Coleman on third-and-four from the Bears’ 16 with 4:47 left moved the ball into Lions territory at the 49.

‘‘We knew we had man coverage,’’ Trubisky said. ‘‘Kind of dialed it up for him. And we like Anthony on the corners. He ran a great route, the O-line did a great job of giving me time and I just put it in a spot where he could make the play.’’

The play also involved a little chemistry between Miller and Trubisky.

‘‘[Coleman] played an outside leverage,’’ Miller said. ‘‘We were taught to go outside, no matter what. I just improvised, and so did Mitch. He [saw] it, and he threw it.’’

Then on third-and-five from the Lions’ 34, Miller beat Coleman again on a contested ball down the left sideline for a 32-yard gain to the 2.

Two plays later, Trubisky threw a three-yard touchdown pass to running back David Montgomery to give the Bears a 24-20 lead with 2:17 left.

‘‘That was a great throw by Mitch,’’ Miller said. ‘‘It was designed to throw against man [defense], and that’s what we did.’’

In all, Miller had five receptions for 110 yards in the second half to finish with the second 100-yard game of his career. He had five catches for 122 yards and a touchdown against the Lions last season at Soldier Field.

Miller’s clutch performance on the crucial fourth-quarter drive was a byproduct of the Bears’ determination — and desperation — to get out of Detroit with a victory. They were a play or two away from losing to the Lions, who had undrafted rookie quarterback David Blough making his first NFL start. Something had to happen.

‘‘You could feel the energy in the huddle,’’ Miller said. ‘‘The O-linemen, the receivers, Mitch — everybody was yelling at each other, like: ‘Let’s go. We gotta do this, no matter what.’ That’s what we did. It’s like everybody just got into that mode.’’