Windy City Gridiron picks Bears-Packers

It’s hardly news, but the Bears haven’t fared well against the Packers over the last decade or so. Since 2011, Green Bay has been 19-3 over Chicago. Of those three Bears victories, two came at Lambeau, meaning the Bears have technically had more success on the road against their long-time rival than at home. That’s an important distinction for a game this Sunday in Soldier Field.

Two young Bears, Justin Fields and Darnell Mooney, want to flip this rivalry back into the charter franchise’s favor. They are two players aware of the franchise’s long-standing modern ineptness against the Packers but haven’t personally been a part of much of that failure.

Fields recently left a football rivalry, Ohio State-Michigan, where he was in the Packers’ position of dominance as a Buckeye while Wolverines had little chance of victory. When asked what he thought of the Bears being Michigan of the Bears-Packers rivalry on Wednesday, one could tell the rookie quarterback took a heavy exception.

His demeanor and body language — crossed arms, no smile at the comparison/joke, a terse response — said it all needed to.

Meanwhile, the second-year Mooney had his brain picked about what he thought of the “Packers-Bears rivalry.”

In response: “First of all, it’s Bears-Packers ...”

Every tiny detail matters to shift this rivalry back in Chicago’s favor, even whose nickname takes priority in a spoken sentence. With the Bears’ luck, Fields and Mooney will be two of the biggest drivers to start having consistent success against the Packers again. You know they want to be.

Windy City Gridiron picks Bears-Packers and every other NFL game in Week 6.