In what’s become a highlight of the Matt LaFleur era, the Green Bay Packers rebounded once again – both from a bad loss and a Week 1 loss – by beating the Chicago Bears for the seventh straight time on Sunday night at Lambeau Field.
The Packers, now 1-1 after two weeks, still haven’t lost two straight games in the same regular season since hiring LaFleur in 2019. And LaFleur is unbeaten against the Bears.
Next up is a trip to Tampa Bay to face the unbeaten Buccaneers next Sunday.
First, here’s the good, the bad and the ugly from the Packers’ Week 2 win:
The Good
(AP Photo/Morry Gash)
The plan: LaFleur and Aaron Rodgers got the ball to Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon 37 times, and the dynamic running back responded to the improved workload by producing 237 total yards and scoring a pair of touchdowns. Overall, the Packers rushed for 203 yards and averaged 5.3 yards per rush. Feeding the running backs is a priority for this Packers offense.
Passing defense: The Packers gave up 48 net passing yards – 22 yards lost on three sacks and 70 total passing yards – and delivered the game-sealing interception late in the fourth quarter. Justin Fields completed just seven passes, and 30 of his passing yards came on a flea flicker on the Bears’ first drive. The run defense was another issue, but the Packers shut down the Bears in the air and allowed just 10 points total. The lesson here: It’s hard to score without a passing game in today’s NFL.
The special teams: Mason Crosby made both field goals and all three extra points, Pat O’Donnell boomed two punts (including a 72-yarder), Jack Coco snapped well, Amari Rodgers had a 20-yard punt return and the Bears didn’t have a game-changing special teams play. Dallin Leavitt had two tackles covering kickoffs, and Rudy Ford forced a fair catch as a gunner on punt coverage. The arrow on special teams is pointed in the right direction.
Preston Smith: The veteran edge rusher produced two sacks and three quarterback hits. He was active setting the edge and disruptive as a rusher, and the Bears couldn’t fool him on run-action fakes. He led the team in tackles (seven), sacks (2.0) and quarterback hits (three). This was a high-quality performance in primetime from Smth.
Return of Elgton Jenkins: The Pro Bowler gave up a couple of sacks, but both Aaron Rodgers and Matt LaFleur specifically pointed to Jenkins’ return as a major spark for the Packers in Week 2. Just…
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