New quarterback in Green Bay, same result as Jordan Love took over where Aaron Rodgers left off in his ownership of the Chicago Bears. Green Bay-Chicago is one of the best rivalries in the NFL historically, but as of late it's been a little one sided. Love, to his credit, played quite well in his first official start in the post-Rodgers era.
That shouldn't let the Bears off the hook though. Chicago entered this season with NFC North title hopes. With Rodgers out of the division for good, perhaps this was their season to surprise us all. Yet, Matt Eberflus's group needs to make some major week-over-week improvements if they're to contend for a playoff spot in 2023.
Chicago Bears to blame: Head Coach Matt Eberflus
Chicago made some major changes this offseason, headlined by moves on the offensive side of the ball, such as trading for wide receiver D.J. Moore and selecting Tennessee Vols OT Darnell Moore to protect Justin Fields. Yet, defensively was meant to be an area of strength for this Bears team, especially with Eberflus as a former defensive coordinator with the Indianapolis Colts.
"I would say I feel better about the identity overall, just because we're in the system one more year, the coaches are more familiar with the players, the players that we have, bringing the new guys on, we're bringing more experienced players," Eberflus said this week. "So definitely feel more comfortable with that piece of it."
Defense is supposed to be the Bears identity, but it was nowhere to be found on Sunday. Love had three touchdowns through the air, and Chicago couldn't get off the field on third down. That understandably was an area of frustration for Bears fans.
Most importantly, though -- this is the Packers. Until further notice, the NFC North goes through Green Bay and Minnesota (sorry, Lions). Games against those foes at home are all-important, and Chicago wasted one.
Chicago Bears to blame: Wide receiver Chase Claypool
The Chicago Bears traded for Chase Claypool at last season's NFL trade deadline, giving up an early second-round pick in the process. Claypool struggled in a new system when he was acquired by Chicago, and couldn't form much of a connection with quarterback Justin Fields.
Ahead of his first full season with the Bears, Claypool has heard all of the preseason hype around his name. Claypool has the frame of a top-tier wide receiver, but thus far in his career he has lacked the tools.
Claypool had plenty to say about his former team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, prior to Chicago's game against Green Bay.
"I just think that at some point, the perspective on me, at some point, was like, 'Oh, he's not a red-zone threat,' for some reason. Or, 'He's not a deep-ball threat,' for some reason,"Claypool said. "I'm not sure why that happened. I started getting formationed away from those things."
Claypool was none of those things in Pittsburgh. In fact, he wasn't much of a threat at all. Against the Packers on Sunday, he didn't record a single catch.
Chicago Bears to blame: QB Justin Fields
The blame starts and ends with quarterback Justin Fields, who is now in his third season out of THE Ohio State University. The Bears traded up for Fields in 2021, and while he's shown some flashes of the athletic brilliance that made Chicago want to select him No. 11 in the first place, his consistency has been lacking.
Fields now falls to 5-21 as a starting QB in the NFL. Wins are not a player stat, of course, but Fields has such an impact on the game at his best, and at some point the Bears need to see his gaudy athletic ability pay off in the win column.
Chicago flirted (per reports) with selecting Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud in this year's NFL Draft rather than trading the pick to Carolina. Ryan Poles denied those reports, and said that Fields is still his guy. Still, information like that doesn't leak without a little bit of merit. Even if the Bears were merely doing their due diligence, it's fair to wonder just how patient they'll be with Fields moving forward.
Fields had two critical turnovers against the Packers this week, including a pick-6. He couldn't move the offense up and down the field without hitting snag or two. Fields was loose with the football, which is unforgiveable for any QB, let alone in a rivalry matchup like this one.
