All the way back in Week 1, the Packers and Bears met at 3:25 p.m. CST at Soldier Field to kick off another chapter in their historic rivalry, and to kick off the 2023 regular season. Now, in Week 18, the two teams will meet again, this time at Lambeau Field at 3:25 p.m. CST, to close out the 2023 regular season. It’s only the second time, the first being in 2010 (good year), that the Packers will end the regular season against Chicago. At 8-8, Green Bay clinches a playoff spot with a win. Here are six things to keep in mind going into Sunday’s kickoff. 

1. Pick of the Defense

The Bears didn’t manage to intercept Jordan Love in Week 1, but they’ve gone on a tear since. Heading into Week 18, Chicago has an NFL-leading 22 interceptions, and three different defenders have snagged four picks this season. 

The Packers are currently on a nine-game winning streak against the Bears (more on that in a bit), and per Stathead.com, Green Bay has only turned the ball over twice in that span. It marks the fewest giveaways by the Packers against Chicago over a nine-game span in the history of the division rivalry. 

The Bears have made significant investments on the defensive side of the ball, starting with an overhaul to the inside linebacker position in free agency. Chicago signed both Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards, and the duo has combined for seven interceptions, 14 passes defensed, and 248 total tackles this season. 

In the secondary, Chicago is getting a lot of production from two former second-round picks. Rookie cornerback Tyrique Stevenson leads the team with 15 pass breakups and four picks. 2020 second-round pick Jaylon Johnson isn’t far behind with four picks (one returned for a touchdown) and 10 passes defensed. 

Love has done a nice job protecting the football in recent weeks and has only thrown one interception in his last seven games. It’ll be imperative to play mistake-free football against Chicago’s turnover-forcing defense. 

2. A Real Bear Killer 

Going back to that nine-game winning streak the Packers are on against the Bears, a round of applause is in order for Head Coach Matt LaFleur. Per the dope sheet, LaFleur is the only coach in NFL history to win his first nine games against Chicago. 

The closest game in LaFleur’s tenure came during his very first game as a head coach when the Packers beat the Bears 10-3 at Soldier Field. Since then, his team has gone on to score at least 21 points in eight straight contests. Adding up the point values, the Packers have scored 269 points to Chicago’s 150 in that nine-game stretch, giving them a plus-119 point differential. That’s coaching dominance. 

It’s also worth noting that in each of LaFleur’s first five seasons as a head coach, his team has had something to play for going into the final week of the season. The Packers control their own destiny in Week 18, and a win gets them a wild card spot in the playoffs. 

3. A Tale of Two Offenses

The Bears and Packers have both found their footing offensively, especially in recent weeks. While the Packers had 38 points and 329 total yards of offense in Week 1 against Chicago, they struggled to put up points consistently for a number of weeks. Now, Green Bay has gone nine straight games posting over 320 yards, has totaled 33 points in back-to-back weeks, and had a whopping 470 total yards of offense against the Vikings in Week 17. 

Chicago has put up over 420 total yards of offense in two consecutive weeks and has rushed for 190-plus yards in back-to-back contests. In fact, the Bears have only put up less than 100 rushing yards in three games all season. 

The Packers have done the bulk of their work through the air. Love is one of only three quarterbacks to throw for 30-plus touchdowns so far this season, and his 3,843 passing yards rank 10th in the league. He has 248 rushing yards and four scores with his legs. 

The Bears are doing damage on the ground. Quarterback Justin Fields actually leads the Bears in rushing yards with 630 and is tied with D’Onta Foreman with four touchdowns apiece. Fields has picked up 39 first downs with his legs and has thrown for 2,414 yards in 12 games with 16 touchdowns and nine picks. 

What makes this matchup so interesting is that the Packers offense might finally have all of its weapons for the first time all season. Christian Watson didn’t play when these two teams met the first time. Now, Watson is trending towards playing. It also sounds like Luke Musgrave has a shot at playing after suffering a lacerated kidney earlier in the season. For Chicago, Fields has had time to build chemistry with his No. 1 receiver who we’ll talk about in just a second. These offenses should look a lot different than they did back in September. 

4. Having a Fields Day with Moore

While there’s no arguing that Fields is dangerous as a mobile threat, he’s also been productive when targeting receiver D.J. Moore. Moore’s 1,300 receiving yards and nine touchdowns are the best numbers of his career. His 70.8% catch percentage is also a career high. 

In Week 1 against the Packers, Moore had a modest outing with only two receptions for 25 yards. Since then, he’s had five 100-plus receiving games and is coming off a 159-yard performance last week against the Falcons. 

With Jaire Alexander serving a one-game suspension in Week 17, Packers fans wondered how the secondary would fare against the likes of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. Turns out, Green Bay did just fine limiting Jefferson to five receptions for 59 yards, and Corey Ballentine snagged the first interception of his career. Still, it won’t hurt to have Alexander back in the fold against a true WR1. 

5. Keeping Up With A Jones

Per the dope sheet, Aaron Jones has posted a game with both a rushing and receiving touchdown in each of the last three seasons against the Bears, doing so in 2021, 2022, and in Week 1 this season. In his 12 games played against Chicago, Jones has 11 touchdowns which is the most touchdowns scored against the Bears since 2017. Those 11 touchdowns against Chicago put him third in team history behind Don Hutson and Jim Taylor who have 15 scores each. Not bad company to keep for No. 33. 

It certainly doesn’t feel like a coincidence that Jones’ return has led to some significant points on offense. In his last two games, Jones has had 20-plus rushing attempts and 130-plus scrimmage yards in both contests, averaging 6.0 yards per carry. He also had a long of 39 yards in Week 16 and a long of 25 yards in Week 17. 

While he’s missed six games this season due to injury, Jones still has 748 scrimmage yards on the season and three scores, with two of those scores coming in Week 1 against Chicago. If there’s any one player on the Packers sideline with a reputation for giving the Bears hell, it’s Jones, and his fresh legs could be the difference down the stretch. 

6. One for the Record Books 

As we wrap up the regular season on Sunday, a few Packers are either chasing or setting some personal milestones. Rashan Gary is a half-sack away from tying his career best which was 9.5 in 2021. A sack would give him 10 and put him into double digits for the first time in his career, all while playing only 52% of defensive snaps. 

Rookie receiver Jayden Reed made some history of his own on Sunday Night in Minneapolis when he broke Sterling Sharpe’s franchise record for most receptions by a Packers rookie. Reed currently sits at 60 catches with one game left to play. His eight receiving touchdowns rank third most by a Packer in their rookie season, behind Billy Howton (13) and Max McGee (9). Per Packers.com, Reed is also the first rookie in NFL history to have 100-plus rushing yards, multiple rushing touchdowns, 60-plus receptions, 650-plus receiving yards, and eight-plus receiving touchdowns in their first season. 

It’s also been a long time since the Packers have had a dynamic playmaker at the tight end position, and now they might just have two. Per Jacob Morley and the dope sheet, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft are the second rookie tight end duo since 1970 to both have 25-plus catches, 300-plus receiving yards, and at least one receiving score since Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez did in the 2010 season. 

It cannot be understated how impressive it is for the Packers to have the youngest offense in the NFL and still be getting these types of contributions from rookies, all while having a quarterback starting his first season. For what it’s worth, Love needs only 157 passing yards on Sunday for a 4,000-yard season. And for anyone interested, Aaron Rodgers finished his first year as a starter throwing for 4,038 yards with 28 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, adding another four touchdowns with his legs. 

What I’ll be drinking for the game: 

Holiday Ale from New Belgium is on deck for me this week. The holidays may be over, but there’s no better “holiday” than watching the Packers beat the Bears, especially with a spot in the playoffs on the line. I hope you all do a little Raji dance on Sunday (yes, I know that was in an NFCC, but the vibes are still immaculate) and remember, the Bears still suck.