Week 1 Packers Bears Preview
Added on Sep 12, 2009 by sbworld in
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Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers
The line for this game is either -3.5 or -4 depending on what sportsbook you are using.
This rivalry ain’t no joke. That goes without saying, but it is as fierce as any in the NFL year in and year out. Putting it under the Lambeau Field lights and in a national audience setting only adds fuel to the fire.
With Jay Cutler running the offense from the quarterback position in Chicago now, expectations are high. It is possibly that those expectations are too high. While he has a young stud running back in Matt Forte (1,238 rushing yards as a rookie) to hand the ball off to on a consistent basis, he’ll also need receivers to step into primary target roles and whether Cutler has that is still up in the air. Devin Hester was the leading receiver yardage-wise last season, but he is still a work in progress. The Bears possess tight ends that can catch the ball, but unless Cutler has someone who can stretch the field often he might be sorry he ever wanted out of Denver. Earl Bennett, Cutler’s former teammate at Vanderbilt, is possibly a guy that raise some eyebrows if the two regain what they had on the field in their college days. The Bears offensive line is also a work in progress and went through a rebuilding mode a year ago.
While the Bears narrowly missed the playoffs with a 9-7 record in 2008, the Packers went through a dismal season that saw them finish 6-10. In the two meetings last season, Green Bay cruised to a 37-3 home victory on November but Chicago rebounded a month later for a 20-17 win to split the series.
Green Bay took the chains off of Aaron Rodgers last year and he responded with a very respectable season at the QB position, throwing for 4,038 yards and 28 touchdowns. Greg Jennings fully entrenched himself as the No. 1 receiver as he finished with 80 catches for 1,292 yards and nine touchdowns, giving him 24 touchdowns in his first three seasons as a professional. Ryan Grant put forth a very respectable season running the ball as well, totaling 1,203 yards on the ground (3.9 yards per carry).
Unfortunately for the Packers, their problems were usually not on the offensive side of the ball in 2008. The defensive unit was largely brutal, giving up at least 25 points seven times. But rather than add a lot of pieces to the defense, Green Bay is hoping that the young players have grown from the experience and will put forth a better performance on the field this time around. Massive defensive tackle B.J. Raji, the team’s first round draft pick out of Boston College, is one addition that should be beneficial. Look for him to clog up the middle and even create a pass rush from time to time.
The Bears were great against the run a year ago, but had their fair share of problems against the pass. Creating a rush against the quarterback proved to be a problem as the defense finished 23rd in the league in sacks, giving opposing quarterbacks all day to pick apart the defensive backfield. Chicago has the personnel to get sacks so look for last year to be an anomaly with guys like Mark Anderson, Alex Brown, and Adewele Ogunleye putting together stellar seasons. Tommie Harris is healthy again as well and motivated to return to his status as one of the elite defensive tackles in the league. The acquisition of linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa to play alongside Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs figures to be a major upgrade as well. But what could hold this defense back from being one of the top few in the league is the secondary and Green Bay is focused on exploiting that.
These teams appear to be fairly evenly matched on paper, with Green Bay having a slightly better offense but the Bears possessing a superior defense. The difference could come down to home field advantage and the turnover battle.
Prediction: Green Bay 31, Chicago 17
