As we noted earlier in our "Behind Enemy Lines" report on the Bears, Chicago's defensive woes over the past month have been exacerbated by the team's instability st safety.

Now come reports out of Chicago that head coach Lovie Smith has plans to demote veterans Chris Harris and Brandon Meriweather, supplanting them in the starting lineup with Major Wright and Chris Conte. This from the Chicago Tribune:

Harris and Meriweather started and struggled against the Lions. Harris, who returned after missing three games with a hamstring injury, was a few steps behind in coverage when Lions receiver Calvin Johnson caught a 73-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford. Harris also made a few other costly errors, including one that helped lead to Jahvid Best's 88-yard touchdown run.
Meriweather played a bit reckless throughout the game, opting for big hits rather than wrapping up for the tackle. The former New England Patriot seems to be having a tough time adjusting to a new defensive system.
If Wright and Conte perform well in practice and start Sunday, as expected, it would be the fifth different safety combination in six games.
The coaches might be asking a lot out of the inexperienced Wright and Conte with the Bears set to face arguably the league's best running back in Adrian Peterson. This would be Wright's fourth career start and Conte's first.

Peterson has always been a thorn in the side of the Bears defense. In seven career games against Chicago, he has 784 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. With the secondary shakeup, the Vikings' Pro Bowler could be in for another big night.