The Green Bay Packers offense began to build some momentum in last week’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, even if the positive vibes were tempered by some late turnovers.
Now they will face a Chicago Bears defense which has flaws but has been opportunistic and found ways to be successful in recent games after allowing 37 points in Week 1.
Here are three thoughts on the matchup between Green Bay’s offense and Chicago’s defense:
Chicago’s risk/reward
The Bears do not have a wealth of talented players on their defense, so coordinator Dennis Allen is covering for this by leaning into the chaos.
Allen is not just blitzing with five, he is sending six or more rushers at the fourth highest rate in the NFL and is challenging opponents with the second highest rate of man coverage
and the sixth highest rate of single-high.
It is a risky strategy, and they have been regularly burned by chunk passing plays on go routes or more often crossers. None of their secondary players have a PFF coverage grade above 64 and they are dead last in contested target percentage at just 7.5%.
The Packers have to be able to punish them in these looks, and through Christian Watson and Matthew Golden they certainly have the tools to do so.
Once again, the question will be whether they can hold up in protection and allow Jordan Love enough time to pick the Bears apart. So far this season, he ranks 10th in EPA per play against six or more pass rushers, which is better than his ranking against no blitz at all.
What was notable from the Panthers’ contest with the Bears was that Bryce Young’s willingness to hang in and move within the pocket, as well as escape and throw on the run or pick up yards with his legs, gave the defense problems.
Love may need to be more willing to go on the move more often than he usually does in this game, and trust the integrity of the pocket when the Bears do rush a traditional four.
Matt LaFleur had answers last week in the quick passing game, and as well as taking shots downfield, he must provide Love with ways to get the ball out in a hurry when required, where they can then hurt Chicago – who are 29th in YAC per reception allowed – after the catch.
Establish the run
After facing two of the more unyielding run defenses in the NFL in the last two weeks, this is the first game in which the prospect of running the ball looks genuinely appealing for the Packers, and they must be able to pay that off.
The Bears are 30th in expected points added (EPA) per rush allowed and 31st in rushing success rate allowed through four games, yet despite their struggles, opponents have barely tested them, as they are facing the second-fewest rushing attempts per game.
Perhaps that is due to the Panthers, Eagles and Jets falling behind multiple scores and the run game going out the window relatively early. That is a game script the Packers fell into versus the Falcons, and it did not end well.
Green Bay finally got some traction on the ground last week with a couple of explosive runs, but the down-to-down success was still not there.
They have to be able to run the ball with relative effectiveness against this defense to keep themselves ahead of the sticks, which should then allow the Packers to utilize play action to their advantage, as they did plenty last week.
Don’t shoot yourselves in the foot
Also in the spirit of staying in favorable down and distances, the Packers have to cut out the self-inflicted wounds this week. They committed plenty against the Bucs, whether it was penalties, fumbles, interceptions or drops, but managed to escape without blowing the game.
This Bears defense somewhat relies on opponents making mistakes. Unforced errors such as headscratching turnovers have helped swing games their last season and that has continued into this year.
They are blitzing at the sixth highest rate in the NFL in 2026, meaning the offensive line – which could have Kevin Zeitler in the lineup for his debut – has to be assignment sure, and Jordan Love needs to know where his checkdowns are.
Execution on third down and in the red zone will also be key, as Green Bay’s issues in situational football continued last week, while Chicago ranks second in third down defense and 10th in the red area.
The bottom line in Sunday’s game on offense is that the Packers must simply execute better than they have in any previous game. If they can do that, there will be plenty of points available to them.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: 3 things on Packers offense vs. Bears: Risk vs. reward
