The Green Bay Packers traveled to the Windy City to face off against their historic rivals, the Chicago Bears. Despite what certain Bears wide receivers would have you think, the rivalry has recently become increasingly lopsided in favor of the Green and Gold.
The game looked close at times, but the Packers were able to pull away from the Bears, with the final nail in the coffin coming courtesy of an Aaron Rodgers scramble where he made several Bears players bite on a simple pump fake before heading to the end zone. After he scored, Rodgers had some choice words for Bears fans, saying how he has “owned them his entire life” and how he “still owns them.”
Here are 5 numbers that describe Green Bay’s win in Chicago.
19
With so much talk about Mooney’s comments before the game and Rodgers’ after it, we need to establish something. The Packers have beaten the Bears 19 of the last 22 times they’ve played each other.
However, Bears fans are optimistic about Justin Fields, and the Packers fans are nervous about Rodgers’ future, so Bears fans decided this would be the perfect time to reignite some of the sparks that had been lost in years past.
They were mistaken. Rodgers made it clear to them that he is still that guy who has dominated them for years and that as long as he is in Green and Gold, he will continue to get the best of them.
69
The Packers came into the game banged up in the secondary. Kevin King and Jaire Alexander were inactive against the Bears, and the Green Bay secondary only allowed 69 yards in coverage on 6 of 11 attempts. Most of the damage the Bears did in the passing game occurred when they could take advantage of the linebackers in coverage as tight end Cole Kmet ended up with 49 yards on 4 grabs.
The entire cornerback core was incredible in coverage, and they were able to hold their own through a majority of the game. Chandon Sullivan played exceptionally well, allowing no catches on the three times he was targeted while defending the slot.
6
The Packers’ offensive line did well against the Bears pass rush, limiting them to just 6 pressures. Everybody knows that Chicago’s success on defense comes from their ability to pressure the quarterback and keep their inexperienced corners from covering players like Davante Adams for too long.
This stat is more impressive because rookie center Josh Myers left the game after just 2 snaps, and the offensive line is still without left tackle David Bakhtiari. The latter is still on the PUP list for another week as he works his way back from a torn ACL. If the line can keep the pressures down to a minimum, Rodgers will continue to dissect defenses.
5.8
In a game where either team’s passing game couldn’t get off the ground, Aaron Jones proved to be a vital piece as he recorded 5.8 yards per carry. Both Jones and AJ Dillion were able to pound the rock with success as they both went over 5 yards per carry on the day.
What made Jones’ performance so much better was his ability as a pass-catcher when the Packers called on him. Jones finished as the second-leading receiver in yards and receptions. He also tacked on a touchdown through the air for good measure. With Adams generating attention from the secondary, having someone like Jones who can make plays out of the backfield for Rodgers is a luxury for the offense.
89
Speaking of the passing game, while Davante Adams was only held to 4 catches, he posted 89 yards. We all know how good Adams is and how he can single-handedly win a game for the team, but it is concerning how none of the other Packers receivers could give him any help.
Jones had the next highest receiving yards as a running back. With no other wideouts breaking over 50 yards, the Packers may need to look to make some deals during the deadline to get another wideout who can take advantage of all the attention on Adams.
