Chicago Bears emblem
The Minnesota Vikings entered Sunday night’s game with a top five defense. Jordan Love, Jayden Read and a surprising Bo Melton absolutely shredded that defense, to put Green Bay in position to make the playoffs with a win next week against Chicago.
Love was outstanding, hitting several big-time throws against Minnesota’s aggressive blitz packages, finishing 24/33 for 256 yards and three touchdowns in addition to a short rushing touchdown. Love was well-prepared, and remained calm whenever the Vikings brought five or more rushers, with Melton as the primary beneficiary, often finding himself wide open against the depleted secondary.
Rookie Jayden Reed missed the second half with an injury but managed to fit an entire game’s worth of highlights into his first half with two highlight reel touchdowns. His second, a 25-yard catch and run with just 17 seconds left in the first half, effectively put the game away. Reed caught a quick slant and broke several tackles before turning on the jets, and powering through two Vikings defenders at the goal line. A strong game from a fully healthy Aaron Jones (20 carries, 120 yards) ensured there would be no comeback from the Vikings.
The much-maligned Packer defense did what they had to do against Vikings’ quarterback Jaren Hall, an unheralded rookie out of BYU. The Packers’ front harassed Hall during his short stint in the first half, forcing a poorly thrown interception to corner Corey Ballentine. Preston Smith also recorded a strip sack of Hall, continuing his impressive play of late. Hall finished with just 67 yards passing and was benched at the half in favor of Nick Mullens. The defense held Mullens in check as well (13/22, 113 yards, 1 TD), and by the time he came on the Vikings were already down 23-3.
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Packers Control their Destiny
The result of their win, in addition to Seattle’s loss to the Steelers, ensures that the Packers control their own destiny this week against the Bears. If they win, they will be at least the seven seed in the playoffs, with a chance to climb to sixth. They can actually get in with a loss under two convoluted scenarios, but ideally, they would take care of business in Lambeau against an improving Bears team.
Not much has changed about the Chicago offense, where the key to victory is to slow down outstanding receiver DJ Moore, while not allowing quarterback Justin Fields to beat you with his running. The Bears are a mediocre offense, but they can occasionally put up big numbers as they did on Sunday against Atlanta.
Where they have drastically improved is on defense, with the addition of edge rusher Montez Sweat, acquired at the trade deadline. Per the advance statistic Weighted DVOA, the Bears have the fifth best defense over the past four games, and they have forced at least three turnovers in five of their last six games. While Sweat has provided a much-improved pass rush, corner Jaylon Johnson has become of the best corners in the league, often shutting down an opponent’s best receiver.
The Packers destroyed the Bears in week one 38-20. But Chicago has come a long way over the course of the year. If Green Bay is going to finish off their season and make the playoffs, they will need to play turnover-free football, and lean on their pass-catching depth. Tight end Tucker Kraft and receiver Bo Melton have ensured that the team has not missed a beat while Christian Watson, Luke Musgrave and Dontayvion Wicks have been out. The key to beating this version of the Bears is to stretch out their depth in the defensive secondary and continue to work through guys like Kraft and Melton, even as some of the starters return. Fortunately, there may be no deeper offensive team in the league than Green Bay, and the Vikings presented a similar challenge. Love passed with flying colors, and as long as he remains cool under pressure, the playoffs are a real possibility.
If the Packer can gain the sixth seed, they will open in Detroit against a Lions team that is headed in the wrong direction. If they can get in, they can do some serious damage.
