Fresh out of the bye week, the Packers head to Soldier Field to take on the Chicago Bears. The NFC North rivalry has been pretty lopsided the last 10 years with the Packers winning 16 of the last 18 matchups, including 10 straight entering Sunday.
The Bears (4-5) come into the game on a 3 game losing streak, and will have a new play caller having just fired their OC Shane Waldron. The Packers (6-3) will look to take advantage of a vulnerable Chicago Bears team and continue their dominance over this rivalry.
Here are 3 things to watch in the Packers vs. Bears week 11 matchup:
All Gas No Brakes
With all the talk this week about the Bears and how the organization is in shambles, it will be crucial for the Packers to come into this game with their hair on fire. If they can show up to Soldier Field and attack early and often, it could turn into a long day for the city of Chicago.
Considering the Packers are coming into this week off their bye, they should be plenty prepared. Expect them to be aggressive and set the tone early. The bye couldn’t have come at a better time, allowing the Packers and especially Jordan Love to get healthy. Word around Green Bay is this is healthiest Love has looked all season since week 1 in Brazil.
Catch The Ball
One glaring issue that has plagued the Packers offense all year has been dropped passes. Green Bay enters week 11 with the 3rd most drops in the league with 23, behind only the Giants and Browns. In their most recent game, a 24-14 loss to Detroit, Packers pass catchers had 6 drops.
A dropped pass here and there is not an issue and something you can overcome. But when it is something that happens over and over, it becomes a sure fire way to kill drives, and thus turn the ball over. I know it sounds obvious but long, sustained drives that result in points are how you win games. When you are consistently dropping passes, this becomes more and more difficult and just one dropped ball at the wrong time can change the entire momentum and course of a game.
Pressure Caleb Williams
The Bears offensive line is struggling. Caleb Williams holds the ball too long. Two statements that should have Jeff Hafley and the Packers defense salivating. There has been some discourse regarding the lack of pass rush and low sack numbers from the Green Bay defense. That has potential to change this week. The Bears are giving up 4.1 sacks per game with a total of 38, both of which rank 31st in the NFL.
Look for Hafley to scheme some creative blitz packages and cause chaos for the rookie QB with a brand new play caller.
Prediction: Packers 31, Bears 14
One NFC North team is looking to fight for a top spot in the conference while the other is looking for anything to hold on to before falling to the bottom. There is a lot going on in Chicago while the Packers are coming off their bye week mostly healthy, ready to go on a run in the back half of this season.
I expect the Packers to come into this game hyper focused and prepared. They should take this rivalry game serious and make sure the rest of the division knows they are still right there with no plans of going anywhere anytime soon.
