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The undefeated Chicago Bears travel to middle-of-nowhere Wisconsin this weekend for a potential trap game against a winless team. We reached out to our “friends” at ACME Packing Company for 5 questions about our pesky green and yellow rivals up north.
1. Last year the Packers started off taking a comprehensive beating from the Saints that filled Bears fan's hearts with the warmth of schadenfreude. The rest of their season went on to be one of their best. Did this year’s week one loss feel different than last? How so?
I would say the biggest difference was that last year it was probably due to unexpected game plans. New Orleans played the Packers in a lot of 2 Man last year, which they weren’t expecting, and the Saints held onto the ball and scored early, which forced them out of a run script almost immediately. This time, Aaron Rodgers seemed to just not trust the concepts/young players in the passing game and the defensive backs turned Justin Jefferson loose in zone coverage.
2. Which receivers do you think have a chance to show up and make a difference against the Bears this week?
If Allen Lazard could play, that would be great. If not, I think the top two receivers will probably be Sammy Watkins and Christian Watson. Watson probably could have gone for 180 yards in Week 1 if he caught that initial bomb to start the game and Rodgers would have thrown to him when he was open later in the game.
3. Luke Getsy and Nathaniel Hackett are both Packers offensive coaches on new teams this season. Which one do you think had a better week one? Is there anything you gleaned from Getsy’s time at Green Bay you think would be interesting to Bears fans?
Well Getsy won and Hackett tried to set the outdoor field goal record with a minute left in a game, so I gotta go with Getsy there. I think it was interesting that Getsy was a Joe Moorhead disciple and probably would have been offered the Akron head coaching job if Moorhead hadn’t left Oregon and wanted to get back closer to home. For what it’s worth, Rodgers broke down what each positional coach’s responsibility was last year and Getsy handled the team’s third down plans.
4. What’s the Packers' defense’s formula to bounce back against the Bears?
Honestly, they just need to execute better. Jefferson got big plays against Cover 3 and Cover 4, which these defensive backs have probably played since high school. It wasn’t really a scheme issue as much as it was an execution issue. The secondary, on paper, should be the strength of the team. Hopefully, they iron it out soon.
5. Jordan Love. Is that really a thing?
Kinda? He had a really good game in Week 2 of the preseason, but he’s still the backup and the team is unlikely to pick up his fifth-year option. He’s probably closer to trade bait at this point than the future of the franchise.
BONUS QUESTION: Draft kings currently has the Packers as a +10 point favorite this Sunday night. This is obviously a mistake because the Bears have won all their games and the Packers have lost all of theirs. Are you going to take free money by betting the Bears to cover or will you feel compelled to abstain out of loyalty to the Pack?
I do like the Bears’ point spread this week, but a Packers win. I’m just hoping they score more than 7 points this week.
He better hope the Packers score more than 7 points if they’ll have any chance of beating the Bears high-flying offense. If you want to take his advise, our friends over at DraftKings Sportsbook have you covered for this game and all the week’s NFL action.
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