The Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers will play Sunday at Soldier Field with first place in the NFC North on the line. The Bears are hoping the momentum from last week’s 20-9 win over the Las Vegas Raiders can carry them forward. But the Packers have won their last four games and appear as if they might be close to be hitting their stride on offense. As kickoff approaches, here’s the inside slant on three notable storylines.
If at first …
A little less than two minutes remained Sunday afternoon at Allegiant Stadium, and the Las Vegas Raiders had just turned the ball over on downs. As the Bears took possession at the Raiders 30 still only ahead by one score, Matt Nagy knew the game was as good as over. On his sideline, Cairo Santos was calmly drilling footballs into the kicking net. It was almost as if Nagy could hear the points about to be added to the scoreboard.
On the Bears’ previous possession, Santos nailed a 46-yard field goal to increase his team’s lead to 17-9. Nagy didn’t have an ounce of worry over that kick. Nor was he anxious over the game-sealing try that was forthcoming.
Santos hasn’t missed a field goal in 19 games, including the playoffs, a streak of 34 consecutive makes that dates to Sept. 27, 2020. Santos is locked in and everyone in the organization knows it. Thus Nagy had little issue with the Bears becoming predictable in the late stages Sunday.
“Everybody in the world knows there are probably three runs coming,” he said.
Indeed there were. The Bears ran three times for a total of 2 yards, then sent Santos in to shut things down. (Perhaps the veteran kicker needs to choose some closer music.)
Snap. Hold. Boot. Good from 46 yards.
“The confidence is there from all of us,” Nagy said. “Myself included. And it’s nice to have that.”
Not all that long ago, the Bears didn’t have any of that. In 2018, you might recall, Cody Parkey missed a total of 15 kicks between the preseason, regular season and playoffs combined, none more notorious than his season-ending “Double Doink” gaffe in the Bears’ NFC divisional-round loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. That traumatic miscue triggered a frantic and sometimes amusing search for a new kicker in the offseason of 2019. And when Parkey’s successor, Eddy Pineiro, had his own hiccups that next fall, Nagy’s trust in his kicking operation shrunk even further.
With Santos? Since the 29-year-old kicker began his hot streak in Week 3 last season, the sense of calm and certitude on the Bears sideline has been undeniable. And invaluable. Santos’ two fourth-quarter field goals Sunday were no-doubters from the time he ran onto the field. Those makes proved particularly notable in a week in which kickers across the NFL were suddenly morphing into Charlie Brown at every turn.
Packers kicker Mason Crosby beat the Bengals with a walk-off 49-yard field goal in overtime Sunday. But that came only after he missed potential game-winning kicks of 36 and 51 yards in the fourth quarter and another from 40 yards on the Packers’ first possession of overtime.
Bengals rookie Evan McPherson, meanwhile, had his own issues, hitting the right upright with a go-ahead 57-yard attempt in the final minute of regulation, then barely missing a 49-yard try in overtime.
During a span of 8 minutes, 2 seconds in that game, five kicks went haywire. It was difficult to watch. And somewhat amusing. But Crosby and McPherson weren’t alone. Leaguewide, there were 27 missed kicks in Week 5 — 14 field-goal tries and 13 PAT attempts.
The chaos began Thursday night with the Seattle Seahawks’ Jason Myers pulling a 35-yard field-goal attempt wide right at the end of the first half and the Los Angeles Rams’ Matt Gay clanging an extra-point attempt off the right upright in the third quarter. The week culminated with Indianapolis Colts kicker Rodrigo Blankenship missing three times — two field-goal attempts plus an extra-point try — further fueling the Baltimore Ravens’ rally from 19 points down in the second half.
In between, the league’s placekicking pandemonium included:
Journeyman Matthew Wright of the Jacksonville Jaguars knocking a 53-yard field-goal attempt off the crossbar and leaving the Jaguars without a made field goal this season. The Jags are the first team in the Super Bowl era to go without a field goal through five games of a season.
In Houston, Ka’imi Fairbairn of the Texans and Nick Folk of the New England Patriots combined to miss the first three point-after-touchdown tries, an eventual 25-22 Patriots win.
And the imprecision wasn’t limited to the United States either. New York Jets rookie Matt Ammendola drilled the left upright with an extra-point attempt at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Oh, and Parkey … Yes, Cody Parkey. He injured his groin during pregame warmups Sunday afternoon, then proceeded to botch two extra-point attempts in the New Orleans Saints’ 33-22 win over the Washington Football Team. The Saints waived Parkey with an injury settlement Tuesday and filled their kicker need by — wait for it — signing rookie Brian Johnson off the Bears practice squad.)
Santos was aware of the wackiness that had happened Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati. Highlights of the missed kicks ran on the Allegiant Stadium video board late in the second half.
“It was crazy,” he said. “The whole crowd was cringing after every miss. And I just couldn’t believe it. Those are two excellent kickers. A day like that can happen.”
It hasn’t — knock on wood — happened to Santos for a while. He has made 37 of his 39 field-goal attempts since rejoining the Bears in 2020. His lone PAT miss during that span was a block by the Detroit Lions in Week 13 last season.
The kicker’s credo: Never second-guess a groove.
“It’s been a blur for a while now,” Santos said. “My mentality has been ‘copy and paste’ from week to week for a while.”
Crosby had been on a similar roll before Sunday. Before the first of his three misses against the Bengals, he had made 31 field-goal attempts in a row, including the playoffs, dating to a miss against the Lions in the 2019 season finale.
Then, suddenly, a glitch.
“I just kept reloading,” Crosby said. “And we kept getting (opportunities).”
When his game-winning 49-yard kick split the uprights, Crosby admitted there was an odd combination of excitement and relief.
“I just wanted so badly to come through there,” he said. “It’s what I do. I had a couple go bad and was really happy to hit that one.”
Added Bears special teams coordinator Chris Tabor: “It just shows that with a guy who is tough-minded like that, he’s always going to bounce back.”
By the same accord, it also proves that even the most established, tough-minded kickers can be vulnerable to a rough day. Last week’s kicking craziness demonstrated as much.
Now the Bears head into Soldier Field to face the Packers with incredible kicking comfort.
“Copy and paste,” Santos said.
Attack mode
Matt Nagy has referenced the play multiple times this week, a 9-yard reception from Las Vegas Raiders receiver Hunter Renfrow on Sunday afternoon. Renfrow beat inside linebacker Roquan Smith on an out route, then was maneuvering to blaze past Smith in the open field. Yet here came Robert Quinn. From the top of his rush, a full 9 yards behind the line of scrimmage, Quinn turned on the jets, attacked Renfrow and tackled him from behind a yard short of the first down. It was a seemingly minor contribution in the moment. But it was a play made with heart and hustle.
Said defensive coordinator Sean Desai: “You see a guy who is a veteran and a leader on the team that is emptying his tank on every play.”
The Bears defense followed with stops on the next two plays. And the Raiders’ opening drive of the second half fizzled into a three-and-out.
“Robert does that in practice,” Nagy said. “And when you can take a practice clip and then see that in the game, it’s pretty neat. That was really important. It’s the finish we talk about.”
Added Desai: “If he doesn’t swarm like that, who knows? Maybe it’s first-and-10 there and the whole mood of everything changes. … You never know what play can be an impactful play in a game. So that’s effort we want and strive for on every play.”
That, Nagy emphasized, is just one example of the brand of high-energy, relentless defense the Bears have been playing over the last month. Coming off a lethargic and disappointing defensive effort in a 34-14 season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Rams, the Bears coaching staff made it known they needed more intensity from the defense. More aggression. More oomph. From everyone.
Nagy asked his defense to prove it could be relied on every week as a swarming unit. For 60-plus plays each game.
Desai’s group has responded. Since Week 2, the defense has been the driving force of a stretch in which the Bears have won three of four games. In the team’s victories, the defense has allowed an average of just 283 yards and 13.3 points.
The Bears enter Week 6 as the NFL leaders in sacks with 18. They have added seven takeaways and rank seventh in points allowed (20 ppg). And while both their mettle and legitimacy will be tested in a major way the next two weeks with games against all-time-great quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady, there’s growing confidence plus a shared sense that legitimate momentum is being built.
Cornerback Jaylon Johnson acknowledged the Bears’ satisfaction with the way things have come together through five games.
“I feel like that just speaks to who we are as men and who we are as competitors,” Johnson said. “It’s just going back each week and recommitting our minds to the process of getting better. Just actually applying what we learn each week out on the field and becoming closer as a group.”
No one should have a greater appreciation for just how valuable a dependable playmaking defense can be than Nagy. Three years ago, he won Coach of the Year honors after the defense propelled the Bears to a division championship, leading the NFL in takeaways and points allowed while posting an NFC-best 50 sacks.
With the defense seemingly climbing back toward that level, a work-in-progress offense that is striving to form an identity to set up rookie quarterback Justin Fields for success seems to have a larger margin for error and increased chances of playing the brand of complementary football Nagy wants to see.
Over the last two weeks, the Bears have led for exactly 97 minutes while trailing for only 5:49.
The Bears beat the Raiders on Sunday despite managing only 109 net passing yards and 252 yards overall. Three weeks earlier, they toppled the Cincinnati Bengals when the defense scored as many touchdowns as it allowed. The Bears posted only 206 total yards that afternoon and still left Soldier Field with a feel-good win.
In his fourth season, Nagy has coached 55 games including the playoffs. The Bears have won 31 times. Yet run those victories under a microscope and it becomes apparent that at least 16 of them have come on days in which the defense has been the obvious engine.
Sunday’s triumph in Las Vegas qualifies, marking the 11th time the Bears have won a game under Nagy without reaching 300 yards of total offense. It also was Nagy’s 15th victory as a head coach without his offense scoring more than 20 points.
Overall during Nagy’s tenure, the Bears defense has held 21 opponents below 300 yards while allowing fewer than 20 points a staggering 30 times.
The degree of difficulty of accomplishing those feats will be much higher Sunday afternoon with Rodgers and the Packers in town. But at this stage, the Bears defense feels up to the challenge.
It was notable, at the very least, that Packers star receiver Davante Adams offered high praise of the Bears defense Wednesday afternoon.
“It reminds me a lot of their 2018 team,” Adams said.
For whatever it’s worth, that was the last time the Bears beat the Packers too. Still, it’s notable the defense’s swarming nature and its game-changing production is turning heads.
Said Desai: “I’ve told you guys from the beginning that we want to be able to be palpable on defense — whether you’re in the stadium or not. When guys run to the ball, everybody sees that and notices that and good things happen.”
So long, farewell?
Aaron Rodgers used to have a set routine when the Packers visited Chicago. On the night before the game, he would go for a long walk through the streets of downtown, then later find his way to Mastro’s Steakhouse on Dearborn for dinner. In November 2017, on the Saturday evening of Week 10, Rodgers was on his standard stroll when 11-year-old Peter Nicoll recognized him, even with a heavy coat and winter hat on.
Nicoll told his mother Julia.
I think that’s Aaron Rodgers.
Which prompted Julia to speak up and just ask.
Are you …
Indeed.
Rodgers began talking to the mother and son, posed for a picture and walked with them for several blocks. For the Nicolls, it was a thrill of a lifetime. “He just started talking to us like we were all neighbors and friends,” Julia told the Green Bay Press Gazette a few days later. “We walked with him for the next 15 minutes, 20 minutes to Michigan Avenue.”
That encounter left a lasting impression on Rodgers, too, enough so that he referenced it Wednesday when expressing his appreciation for Chicago and Bears fans.
“That was a nice chance meeting,” Rodgers said. “But I’ve always enjoyed the city. I’ve enjoyed the fans — even though they haven’t enjoyed me.
“I get it. Maybe there’ll be a little more love when my time comes to an end playing here.”
Hold up, Aaron. What was that last part again? About your time coming to an end playing in Green Bay?
Indeed, it’s possible Sunday will mark Rodgers’ last trip to Chicago as a member of the Packers. We don’t need to rehash all the drama from April through July, of all the widespread conjecture about how Rodgers’ 2021 season with the Packers was far from guaranteed for quite some time. The quarterback’s rift with the organization — most notably general manager Brian Gutekunst — was a very real thing. And many who had been with or around the organization throughout Rodgers’ first 16 seasons were convinced he was going to force a trade or sit out the season or even just retire and go off and host “Jeopardy!”
The acrimony had gotten that bad.
In Chicago, even just the thought of that possibility was enough to spark widespread jubilation.
Alas, for the Bears and their fans, Rodgers is still in Green Bay, still at the controls of a high-powered offense and still in the mix as a Super Bowl contender. The Packers followed their staggering 38-3 season-opening loss to the New Orleans Saints with four consecutive wins.
Now Rodgers is coming back to Chicago this weekend intent on padding the Packers’ one-game lead in the NFC North.
Rodgers has started 13 games at Soldier Field during his career, including the 2010 NFC championship game that helped propel him to his only Super Bowl victory. He has won 10 of those contests. Within that scrapbook is the division championship triumph in 2013 when he returned after missing seven games with a broken collarbone and threw a game-winning 48-yard touchdown pass to Randall Cobb on fourth-and-8 in the final minute. (The Packers converted three fourth downs on that drive.) It also includes last season’s 35-16 thumping of the Bears that, for at least a few minutes, seemed to knock them out of the playoff hunt.
That’s kind of how Rodgers always has been in this rivalry, a cutthroat competitor, an assassin, a superstar who has taken great satisfaction in putting the Bears in their place over and over again.
But what if this weekend truly is his last pop-in through Chicago? What if, as Rodgers and receiver Davante Adams seemed to hint at in matching Instagram posts in July, this is the quarterback’s “Last Dance” season with the Packers?
At Halas Hall, there’s plenty of motivation to make this visit unenjoyable for Rodgers. And the Bears might have enough chess pieces within a resurgent defense to create consistent discomfort for the Packers quarterback. Rodgers shouldn’t have the luxury of sitting in a clean pocket and taking target practice for the entirety of Sunday afternoon.
That said, the Bears are plenty familiar with Rodgers’ mastery, of his intelligence and vision and ability to put his offense in favorable positions. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson has faced Rodgers only once — on the Sunday after Thanksgiving last season. But even in that game, with the Packers building a 27-3 first-half lead and coasting from there, Johnson saw the way Rodgers could toy with an opposing defense.
“He definitely runs the show,” Johnson said. “You can see being out there on the field how he changes the offense, how he changes routes, how he changes calls, how he really just dissects the defense. He really sees what you’re in and once he really understands what you’re in, he molds the offense to beat what you’re in.”
Many a Bears defender over the years have felt that way. Now the Bears will attempt to disguise their defensive looks to make the riddles a bit harder for Rodgers to solve. Good luck.
Rodgers hasn’t been in the zone yet this season quite the way he was in 2020 on the way to 48 touchdown passes, another MVP award and a trip to the conference championship game. But he’s still Aaron freaking Rodgers. And the Bears will have to play a near-perfect game to topple him.
At the very least, they’ll get their crack at trying, which wasn’t a given just three or four months ago when Rodgers’ future with the Packers was in serious doubt.
When Rodgers checked into training camp in Green Bay in July, he made it clear the displeasure he felt with the organization wasn’t entirely about the team’s decision to draft Jordan Love in the first round in 2020. More so, Rodgers just wanted more of a voice in the team’s discussions on how best to pursue a Super Bowl championship.
“I just expressed my desire to be more involved in conversations directly affecting my job,” Rodgers said.
He wanted input on free-agency decisions and a chance to provide feedback on certain roster decisions.
“The rules are the same for most people,” Rodgers said, “but every now and then there are some outliers, guys who’ve been in an organization for 17 years and won a few MVPs where they can be in conversations at a different and higher level.
“I’m not asking for anything that other great quarterbacks across the last few decades have not gotten, the opportunity to just be in conversation.”
Coming off an MVP season, Rodgers also wanted the Packers to commit to him beyond 2021. That wish went ungranted.
At times, he said, Rodgers seriously considered retirement. But then July rolled around and his affinity for his teammates and his hunger to win a championship led him back into the Packers locker room.
“The fire still burns,” he said in late July, “and I wanted to be on the football team.”
Still, perhaps this will be Rodgers’ last trip into Chicago as the Packers quarterback. He is as aware of that as Bears fans are. And while he enjoyed his chance encounter downtown with Julia and Peter Nicoll four years ago, he understands that’s not the universal reception he gets in Chicago.
“They’re not very cordial most of the time,” Rodgers said this week. “But I respect that. That’s a great sports town.”
Chicago respects Rodgers too. But make no mistake, Bears fans would have little qualms if Rodgers were to stop making his annual visits.
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