The Green Bay Packers will open the 2023 regular season with a trip to Chicago and a chance to renew the rivalry with the Bears on Sunday at Soldier Field. Interestingly enough, the start of the Jordan Love era in Green Bay comes against a team Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre long terrorized.
Matt LaFleur is 8-0 against the Bears since becoming the Packers coach. Extending the winning streak to nine will require LaFleur’s team to go into hostile territory and beat a team that added receiver DJ Moore and several veteran free agents on defense. As of Friday, the Packers are slight road underdogs.
Buy Packers TicketsHere are five keys to the Packers beating the Bears in the season opener
Pressure Justin Fields into sacks and mistakes
The Bears believe they’ve upgraded the offensive line and weapons for Justin Fields, but the young quarterback is notorious for holding the football and inviting pressure. Last season, Fields threw six interceptions and had 14 turnover worthy plays (fourth most) under pressure, per PFF. He was also sacked 55 times. Can the Packers’ defensive front create driving-killing sacks and game-changing turnovers? Even with Rashan Gary on a pitch count, the Packers have more than enough talent in the front seven to keep Fields under pressure. The Bears are 2-14 when Fields is sacked three or more times in a game. Another correlating factor: keeping Fields pressured without opening scrambling lanes.
Beat the blitz
The Bears, with a questionable pass-rush and an aggressive defensive playcaller, are going to come after Jordan Love, who was hardly under pressure during the preseason. How will Love handle what the Bears throw his way? And what counters will Matt LaFleur have up his sleeve? During his 2021 season start in Kansas City, Love got blitzed incessently by the Chiefs. While the Bears might not be quite as aggressive on Sunday, Matt Eberflus will want to have Love feeling the heat right away. Expect to see the Bears do a lot of pre-snap disguise and bring blitzers from all over the field in an attempt to rattle Love and the Packers offensive line. The young passing game must consistently handle the extra pressure.
Win the situations
The big situations — namely third down and in the red zone — are always a challenge for young and inexperienced players. Unless the Packers are consistently hitting big plays, converting on third down and turning red-zone trips into touchdowns will be crucial to the Jordan Love-led offense movng the ball and scoring enough points to win. The good news: While upgraded on defense in 2023, the Bears finished last season ranked 32nd in third-down defense and 32nd in scoring defense overall. And Love threw three red-zone touchdown passes during the preseason; one each to Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed. Can the Packers protect up front, and can Love be accurate and decisive when the offense needs a big play on third down or in the scoring area?
Testing the run defense
The Bears lost running back David Montgomery in free agency, but expect Luke Getsy’s offense to continue being a ground-based scheme. Khalil Herbert, Roshon Johnson and D’Onta Foreman could all get touches, and everyone understands the dynamic running ability of Justin Fields, who will get designed run plays. This is a terrific first test for the Packers defense after an offseason of emphasizing improvement against the run. New starting defensive linemen Devonte Wyatt and TJ Slaton will be in the spotlight at the line of scrimmage, and the Packers need ultra-athletic linebacker Quay Walker to help limit the damage when Fields runs the football. Expect this to be a physical battle up front. Keep in mind, the Bears were fifth in run-blocking grade at PFF last season. If Chicago’s offense can’t consistently produce successful runs, it’s hard to imagine the Bears scoring enough points to win the game.
Jaire Alexander vs. DJ Moore
One of the best player vs. player matchups of Week 1 in the NFL. Alexander, a two-time All-Pro, will get his fair share of opportunities to cover Moore, who has three career 1,000-yard receiving seasons. The Bears are hoping Moore can be what A.J. Brown was for Jalen Hurts last season, or a dynamic receiver who helps a young quarterback develop rapidly as a passer by getting open on time and making all the spectacular plays necessary of a No. 1 receiver. The Packers’ antidote is Alexander, one of the game’s best cover corners. If Moore is winning downfield and making big plays, the Packers could be in trouble defensively. But if Alexander can limit or take away Moore’s playmaking ability and force the Bears to feed the ball to other players in the passing game, the Packers could make moving the football quite difficult. While the Bears think they have a game-changing weapon, the Packers are paying Alexander the big bucks to take away receivers just like Moore. The outcome on Sunday could hinge on which player — Moore or Alexander — gets the better of the other.
