PACKERVILLE, U.S.A.: Packers at Bears Preview

Rodgers, Packers try to show they still own struggling Bears

Various Sources

DAY/TIME/TV: Sunday, 12:00 p.m. CST, FOX

SERIES RECORD: Packers lead 104-95-6

LAST MEETING: Packers beat Bears 27-10 on Sept. 18 in Green Bay.

LAST WEEK: Packers lost to Philadelphia 40-33; Bears lost to New York Jets 31-10

PACKERS OFFENSE: OVERALL (16), RUSH (14), PASS (14), SCORING (23)

PACKERS DEFENSE: OVERALL (16), RUSH (31), PASS (4), SCORING (22t)

BEARS OFFENSE: OVERALL (24), RUSH (1), PASS (32), SCORING (19t)

BEARS DEFENSE: OVERALL (20), RUSH (27), PASS (12), SCORING (27)

TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Packers minus-5; Bears 0.

Aaron Rodgers turned toward the crowd after scrambling for a dagger touchdown at Soldier Field last year and landed a verbal haymaker for good measure. "I still own you! I still own you!" he screamed. Rodgers will get a chance to show again that he still owns Chicago when the Green Bay Packers visit the Bears on Sunday. "WGN was one of the few channels we had on our TV, so I grew up watching Cubs games and Bulls games, so I've been a fan of Chicago sports for a while," he said. "I have a lot of respect for the city and the legacy of excellence that the team and the region has."

Rodgers also has a knack for sticking it to the Bears. And he has done it more than a few times at Soldier Field. There was a win in the 2011 NFC championship game en route to the Super Bowl 45 championship and that meeting in 2016 when the Bears rallied from 17 down in the fourth quarter to tie it. The Packers came out on top 30-27 when Rodgers hit Jordy Nelson with a 60-yard pass to set up Mason Crosby's field goal as time expired.

As for where last year ranks on his list of big moments at Soldier Field? Rodgers puts it nowhere near the top. "It's not even the top five," he said. Rodgers has owned the Bears throughout his career, with a 24-5 record against them, counting the playoffs. The NFL's oldest rivalry has been a one-sided affair in recent years with Green Bay winning seven straight. The Packers (4-8) are banking on that to continue with their playoff hopes hanging by a thread. They've dropped seven of eight after losing 40-33 to NFC East-leading Philadelphia last week. Rodgers exited that game with a rib injury. He also has been playing with a broken right thumb he suffered on the final play of a 27-22 loss to the New York Giants in London on Oct. 9.

The Bears (3-9), meanwhile, have lost five in a row. But it looks like they will have quarterback Justin Fields back after he missed last week's game at the New York Jets because of a separated left shoulder. Fields was a full participant in practice Friday for the second straight day and was listed without a designation on the team's final injury report. He separated his non-throwing shoulder and suffered some ligament damage in the AC joint when he was tackled on a designed run late in Chicago's loss at Atlanta two weeks ago.

SLOWING THE RUN

The Packers allowed 363 yards rushing last week, the most they'd given up in a single game since 1977. Jalen Hurts rushed for 157 yards, the highest single-game total ever by an Eagles quarterback. Coach Matt LaFleur said Green Bay had more than 20 missed tackles in that game and called it "by far our worst tackling performance that I've seen here." Now, the Packers' 31st-ranked run defense must deal with a Bears offense featuring the mobile Fields, assuming he plays. Even if he can't go, the Bears' rushing attack still could bother Green Bay. Chicago's David Montgomery rushed for a season-high 122 yards on 15 carries in the Bears' 27-10 loss at Green Bay in Week 2.

BANGED-UP BEARS

Fields wasn't the only banged-up Bear. Safety Eddie Jackson (foot) and leading receiver Darnell Mooney (ankle) suffered season-ending injuries last week. The loss of Mooney could create opportunities for Byron Pringle and recently acquired Chase Claypool. Pringle has been limited to six games because of a calf injury in his first year in Chicago, though he caught his first touchdown last week. Claypool had his best outing since a trade from Pittsburgh on Nov. 1, with catches of 31 and 20 yards.m"I think we're gonna have to spread the ball around," coach Matt Eberflus said. "Obviously, Mooney is a dynamic player. He's had a good chemistry with Justin and the rest of the quarterbacks, and I think we've got to do it by committee, using all of them the best way we can based on their skillsets."

ALL TIED UP

Both the Packers and Bears are well below .500, but there's still plenty at stake Sunday from a historical perspective. The teams each have 786 regular-season wins to share the NFL lead. The winner of Sunday's game earns sole possession of first place, at least for one week.

EMERGING WATSON

Packers receiver Christian Watson has caught six touchdown passes in his last three games. The second-round pick out of North Dakota State is the first Packers rookie to have a touchdown catch in three straight games since Billy Howton in 1952. It's a remarkable surge for Watkins, considering his only touchdown before this three-game stretch came on a 15-yard run in a 27-24 overtime victory over the New England Patriots on Oct. 2.

NO MONSTERS

The Bears were hardly dominating on defense when they had Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith. And things haven't gotten any better since they were traded. Chicago has been hit hard by injuries to the secondary, and a failure to generate pressure has left the team tied with Las Vegas for a league low with 16 sacks. The Jets' Mike White threw for 315 yards, the most by one quarterback against the Bears this season.

PACKERS PLAYER TO WATCH

QB Aaron Rodgers. The four-time MVP has dominated the Bears to the tune of a 24-5 record counting the playoffs. He has been particularly good in his past five games against Chicago, completing 75.9% of his passes for 1,221 yards with 16 touchdowns and no interceptions.

BEARS PLAYER TO WATCH

RB David Montgomery. The Bears were able to run the ball last week even without injured QB Justin Fields (separated left shoulder) and RB Khalil Herbert (hip). They ran for 127 yards on 29 attempts, with Montgomery finishing with 79 yards on 14 carries. Montgomery has performed well in six career games against Green Bay, running for 393 yards and averaging 5 per attempt. He had a season-high 122 yards in Week 2 at Lambeau Field.

KEY MATCHUP

WR Christian Watson vs. CB Jaylon Johnson. Watson caught four passes for 110 yards and a touchdown last week. He has 12 catches and six TD receptions over the past three games. Watson is the first Packers rookie to catch a touchdown in three straight games since Billy Howton in 1952.

KEY INJURIES

It looks as though the Bears will have QB Justin Fields back after he missed last week’s game at the New York Jets because of a separated left shoulder. Fields was a full participant in practice Friday for the second straight day and was listed without a designation on the team’s final injury report… Herbert, who’s on injured reserve, has missed the past two games for Chicago… Backup QB Trevor Siemian (oblique) is set to have season-ending surgery. He played last week after he was hurt in warmups… S Eddie Jackson (foot) and WR Darnell Mooney (ankle) suffered season-ending injuries last week… S Jaquan Brisker (concussion) and CB Kyler Gordon (concussion) were ruled out… S Dane Cruikshank (hamstring) was placed on IR on Wednesday… RTs Riley Reiff (back) and Larry Borom (ankle, knee) are banged up… Rodgers says he plans to play for the Packers on Sunday after leaving the Eagles game with injured ribs. He has played the Packers’ last seven games with a broken right thumb… LB De’Vondre Campbell (knee) has missed four straight games and WR Romeo Doubs (ankle) has been out three straight games, but both practiced on a limited basis this week and were listed as questionable… S Darnell Savage left the Eagles game with a foot injury and was doubtful… OT David Bakhtiari (knee/illness) was ruled out after the team announced he underwent an appendectomy.

SERIES NOTES

The NFL’s oldest rivalry has been one-sided in recent years, with the Packers winning seven in a row. Matt LaFleur is the only coach to win his first seven regular-season games against Chicago.

STATS AND STUFF

Green Bay’s 4-8 record is its worst mark through the first 12 games of a season since 2006, when the Packers started out 4-8 before closing with four straight wins to finish 8-8… The Packers and Bears enter Sunday’s game tied for the NFL lead with 786 regular-season wins… Green Bay allowed 363 yards rushing by Philadelphia, the most the Packers had allowed in a game since 1977… Packers RB Aaron Jones has 4,984 yards rushing, 40 shy of John Brockington for third place on the Packers’ career list. Green Bay’s top two are Ahman Green (8,322) and Jim Taylor (8,207)… Packers DB/KR Keisean Nixon had two kickoff returns of 50-plus yards against Philadelphia. He was the first NFL player to have two kickoff returns of 50-plus yards in a game since New York Jets WR Andre Roberts did it against the Packers on Dec. 23, 2018… The Bears have lost at least five straight for the third consecutive season. They dropped six in a row in 2020 and five in 2021 and five this season entering Sunday… Fields leads all quarterbacks and ranks seventh overall with 834 yards rushing. At 6.8 yards per carry, he is second in the NFL… Chicago and Las Vegas are tied for a league low with 16 sacks. Brisker leads the Bears with three… Cole Kmet is tied for second among TEs with a career-high five touchdown catches… The Packers have beaten the Bears by double digits in each of their last five meetings. The only team ever to beat the Bears by double digits in six consecutive meetings was the 49ers from 1969-75 (6)… QB Aaron Rodgers is 7-0 with 18 TD passes and zero interceptions over his last seven starts against the Bears. He's the third QB in NFL history to win seven straight starts against an opponent while throwing no picks over that span (regular season), along with Steve Young against the Saints (1994-98) and Drew Brees against the Raiders (2003-12). No QB has won eight straight starts against an opponent without throwing an interception… Green Bay has allowed at least 400 yards in three straight games, tied for their second-longest streak in the Super Bowl era behind a five-game streak in 1983… The Bears have rushed for 1037 yards over their last five games but have gone 0-5… They're the first team to rush for 1000+ yards over a five-game span in a single season but lose all five since the Bills did so in 1976… Chicago has allowed at least 27 points in five straight games for only the third time in franchise history (six-game streak in 1996-97, five-game streak in 1989)… S Jaquan Brisker currently leads the Bears with 3.0 sacks. No rookie defensive back on any NFL team has led his team in sacks in a season since sacks were first officially tracked in 1982.