The Green Bay Packers are 1-0 to start the 2023 NFL season after defeating the Chicago Bears 38-20 in Week 1. Green Bay has won nine consecutive games against their oldest rival and couldn’t have asked for a better start to the Jordan Love era.
Despite winning by three scores, the Packers’ offense got off to a rocky start. Their lone touchdown in the first half came on a short field, set up by the defense forcing a turnover on downs to start the game. After three consecutive punts, Green Bay’s next points wouldn’t come until the end of the second quarter when rookie kicker Anders Carlson drilled a 52-yard field goal as time expired.
Buy Packers TicketsHowever, Love and company came out firing on all cylinders in the second half, scoring back-to-back touchdown drives to start the third quarter. As a whole, Green Bay’s offense enjoyed a productive day without top wide receiver Christian Watson, totaling 329 yards while converting 9 of their 16 third down attempts and finishing 3-3 in the red zone.
Defensively, the Packers won the turnover battle 2-0 and were effective at pressuring Chicago quarterback Justin Fields, who was sacked four times and finished with a quarterback rating of 21.7.
Overall, Green Bay did a lot of good things in all three phases, but there is still plenty to clean up before they face a 1-0 Atlanta Falcons team next week.
Before we look ahead to Week 2, let’s highlight the top standouts from their latest win over the Bears.
QB Jordan Love
All things considered, it was a pretty clean day for the new starting quarterback. Love threw for 245 yards and three touchdowns and also added 12 rushing yards to his stat line. As previously noted, the Packers did not have their No. 1 receiver, but Love did a solid job with what he had to work. Naturally, he probably has some throws he wants back, but that is typical for every quarterback. More importantly, Love showed good poise and made big plays with his arm during crucial moments. It’s only one game, but the team should feel good about his opening performance.
The Offensive Line
This unit showed why it is arguably the strongest position group on the team. Basically all of the offense’s success in this game can be traced back to the offensive line. The passing game was effective because Love could make his reads and operate the offense from clean pockets. Aaron Rodgers used to call these “dream games” as the starter and Love likely feels the same way after taking just one sack. That said, it wasn’t perfect by any means, as the run blocking definitely needs to improve.
RB Aaron Jones
Jones is the most important player in this offense for the second straight year. Good things usually happen when he frequently touches the ball, and vice versa. On the first touchdown drive, he had five carries for 24 yards. However, the offense sputtered when he didn’t touch the ball for the rest of the half.
Fortunately, they got back on track after they started feeding Jones again. He had five touches on the 75-yard touchdown drive to begin the third quarter, including a 51-yard catch and run on a screen. He capped that drive off with a one-yard touchdown run. Jones wasn’t done yet, though. On the ensuing offensive drive, the Packers were facing 4th and 3 and decided to go for it on Chicago’s 35-yard line. The gamble paid off as Love found Jones over the middle after he beat the linebacker on an angle route. Jones scored on the play but pulled up with a hamstring injury and did not return to the game.
Hopefully, he won’t have to miss time, as the Packers can’t afford to be without their top weapon. It just goes to show that while it is easy to get frustrated with Jones’ lack of touches, the team must ensure he is healthy for the long season.
DT Devonte Wyatt
To follow up on a strong training camp, Wyatt wreaked havoc against Chicago’s offensive line. He generated consistent pressure and it eventually led to a sack in the third quarter. On the sack, Wyatt made a great read to not buy into a play-action fake by Fields and brought the Chicago quarterback down for an 11-yard loss. A little while later, Wyatt flashed again when he and Kenny Clark got their hands on Fields for a strip sack. It looked like Wyatt had a hand in forcing Fields to fumble the ball, which corner Rasul Douglas recovered. Wyatt may be on his way to making a much-needed second-year jump for the defense.
The Pass Rush
Green Bay’s pass rush made so much noise it’s hard to highlight every player. Rookie first-rounder Lukas Van Ness got the party started when he used his athleticism to bring Fields down for his first career sack. The Bears were threatening to score at the time, but Van Ness’ play helped hold them to a field goal so the Packers could stay up 7-6. Rashan Gary also generated consistent pressure and looked like the Gary of old pre-ACL tear. Even rookie Karl Brooks got in on the action, defeating long-time Bears starter Cody Whitehair for his first career sack. In the season opener, this pass rush looked as advertised and is loaded with young, explosive talent.
LB Quay Walker
Walker’s 2023 season started a lot differently than his 2022 one ended. In last year’s season finale against the Detroit Lions, he was ejected for the second time as a rookie. However, he returned refocused and is off to a promising start in Year 2. Walker was responsible for delivering the dagger in Sunday’s game when he picked off Fields in the final quarter and returned it 37 yards for a touchdown to put his team up by 24 points. He even broke a few tackles in the process but took a massive hit right when he crossed the goal line. Walker was evaluated for a concussion.
K Anders Carlson
Carlson put Green Bay through a roller coaster this summer, but his NFL debut was anything downright smooth. His 52-yard field goal just before halftime was right down the middle with plenty of distance. He also made all five of his extra-point attempts without any issue after missing two in the preseason opener against Cincinnati. If this is the type of consistency the Packers can expect from Carlson, they may have found their franchise kicker.
