What a strange season. The Green Bay Packers are on the verge of finishing 12-5 and returning to the playoffs, yet no one is too excited about where this team sits as they get set to close out the regular season against the Chicago Bears.
That’ll happen when you go 0-5 against the three teams you’re looking up to in the NFC. With the Washington Commanders finding incredible ways to win each week, the Pack faces the likely prospect of earning the seven seed and a wildcard weekend trip to Philadelphia.
Of course, their old coach can bail them out with an upset win over Washington on Sunday — it wouldn’t surprise me a bit if that happens. Then, they would have to handle their business against the Bears to sneak up to the six-seed.
By all accounts, the Packers will go out to win this game. After last week’s dud in Minneapolis, their starters need to play a clean, efficient game in all three phases to get their mojo back and get their minds right for the postseason.
We know they won’t have Jaire Alexander, whose season is over. Also out on the defense are Quay Walker, Evan Williams, and Zayne Anderson. Brenton Cox is listed as questionable but didn’t practice all week with a foot injury. Same with Christian Watson and his ailing knee. Doubt we’ll see either of them play against the Bears.
We may see more of a committee approach to the run game to preserve the wear and tear on Jacobs. The same could hold true at wide receiver, with Bo Melton and Malik Heath getting more snaps than usual. But I’d expect the rest of the starters to play a full 30 minutes.
Now, let’s say the Pack has a comfortable lead at halftime, and Washington is in control in Dallas. With their playoff fate sealed, I could see Matt LaFleur asking a handful of guys to take a seat. Guys like Jordan Love, Jacobs, Romeo Doubs, Tucker Kraft, Elgton Jenkins, Zach Tom, Kenny Clark, Rashan Gary, and Xavier McKinney come to mind.
The emphasis should be on handling their business at Lambeau, beating a Bears team full of players who can’t wait to clean out their lockers and get ready to meet their new coach in the coming weeks. If Green Bay can ease some guys out of the game because they’re ahead, that’s great. If not, I say keep them in and play to win, regardless of what’s happening in Big D.
The Bears are also down some key guys, notably left tackle Braxton Jones, who hurt his ankle a couple of weeks ago. As we saw last Thursday night, that offense is in shambles. With temps in the upper teens at kickoff, the healthy Bears won’t be real excited to deal with an angry Packers team looking to kickstart their confidence.
The Pack makes it 12 in a row over the (onetime) Monsters of the Midway.
Packers 23
Bears 10