Bears vs. Packers: Sunday Night Football Preview and Predictions

By Timothy An

Sunday, Nov. 29 at 8:20 P.M. EST

NBC

Spread: Packers, -9.5

The Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers face off in a classic NFC North matchup on Sunday Night Football. The Chicago Bears are coming off a bye week after losing four straight games. The Bears started the season hot, going 5-1 in their first six games, but have come back down to earth and now sit at 5-5 in 2nd place in the NFC North. The Green Bay Packers are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Indianapolis Colts, in which WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling fumbled the ball in overtime at the Packers’ own 30 yard line, leading to a Colts field goal for a victory. Aaron Rodgers is 18-5 against the Chicago Bears, and we will see if the Bears can pull off the upset victory on Sunday night.

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears have lost four straight games, but still find themselves one game behind the Arizona Cardinals for an NFC Wild Card spot. Many people doubt the Bears’ record, declaring it as an inaccurate representation of how good this team actually is. Now, the Bears have a chance to prove to the world on primetime television that they deserve to be a playoff team. While their defense has been solid throughout the year, the Bears must find a way to get something going on offense if they want to keep up with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense. 

Bears Offense

Allen Robinson is the Bears leading receiver with 755 yards so far this season. (USA TODAY Sports)

To put it simply, the Bears offense has been abysmal. They average the second least amount of yards per game, only gaining 300.9 on average per game. They also average the second least points a game, sitting at 19.1, only behind the New York Jets. The issues of this Bears offensive unit starts with the most important position in football, the quarterback. After starting the first four games of the season, QB Mitchell Trubisky got replaced by QB Nick Foles in the hopes of improving offensive production. However, the offense stayed stagnant and did not improve whatsoever. Coming into Week 12, Foles is dealing with a hip injury, and it seems likely that Trubisky will get the nod for the starting job. Trubisky has a chance to prove that he deserves the starting job, and hopefully he will be able to put on a good performance on Sunday night. Even though the quarterbacks for the Bears have been awful, we can’t attribute the poor performance of the offense to just the quarterbacks. The Bears rushing attack is the worst in the entire league, averaging only 78.2 yards per game, last in the NFL. This team may have a talented receiving core, featuring WR Allen Robinson, WR Darnell Mooney, and WR Anthony Miller, but with no rushing attack and poor play at quarterback, it is difficult to have a good offense. Hopefully, Trubisky can impress us and give us an exciting matchup on Sunday Night Football.

Bears Defense

While the Bears offense has struggled all season, the Bears defense has been the spotlight of the team, keeping them in close games. The Bears defensive units ranks 6th in the NFL in points allowed, only allowing 20.9 points per game. The star of this defense thus far into the season is third-year LB Roquan Smith. He has really stepped up into becoming a tackling machine, ranking 6th in tackles with 96 and 2nd in tackles for loss with 15. This defensive unit also has All-Pro OLB Khalil Mack, leading the team in sacks with 6.5. Combining these two stars with DT Akiem Hicks, LB Danny Trevathan, S Eddie Jackson, and S Tashaun Gibson, makes this one of the scariest defenses in this league. Though this defensive unit is great, they will face a tough matchup against Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night. This will be a physical matchup and we will see if the Bears defense can do enough to slow down this stacked offense. 

Green Bay Packers

Coming off a tough loss against the Indianapolis Colts, the Packers sit at 7-3, atop the NFC North. This Packers team has played great all season long, looking like a serious title contender. This offense has been electric, stacked with talent throughout the whole unit. The defense, on the other hand, has been very average this season. If the Packers want a chance to compete for a Super Bowl, their defense has to start catching its stride throughout the next couple of weeks. We will see if they are able to shut down this abysmal Chicago Bears offense on Sunday night. 

Packers Offense

Marquez Valdes-Scantling fumbles in overtime against the Colts (AJ Mast/AP)

The Packers offensive unit is absolutely stacked this season. They average 30.8 points per game, ranking 3rd in the entire NFL. This unit is led by All-Pro QB Aaron Rodgers, who is having a stellar year, throwing for 2,889 yards (5th in the league), 29 touchdowns (2nd), and just 4 interceptions. His primary target is WR Davante Adams, who leads the league in yards per game with 105.9. He ranks 6th in receptions with 68, and second in receiving touchdowns with 10, all while missing two games this season due to injury. Statistically, Adams is the best wide receiver this season, and combining him with WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR Allen Lazard, and TE Robert Tonyan creates a dynamic offensive unit with a plethora of weapons for Rodgers to throw to. While the passing attack has been absolutely unstoppable, the Packers rushing attack has been very average this season. This is mainly attributed to the fact that their star running back Aaron Jones has dealt with injuries all season long. As a result, he is not fully healthy, and with a backfield featuring both RB Aaron Jones and RB Jamaal Williams, we can expect the running attack to find their groove again.

Packers Defense 

The Packers defense is one that nobody would consider to be a great unit, but nobody would call it bad either. They are a very middle of the pack unit that is average when it comes to stopping the pass and the run. With that said, this unit doesn’t have to be anything special. The Packers offense makes up for their lack of dominance and makes it easier for the defense to be more aggressive. Their defense is led by their front seven, starting with OLB Za’Darius Smith and OLB Preston Smith. After having 13.5 sacks last year, Z. Smith is having another stellar year, already sacking the quarterback eight times. Preston Smith, on the other hand, has regressed after getting 12 sacks last season. He currently only has one to his name, and needs to improve his performance if the Packers hope for a deep playoff run. This front seven also features two former first-round picks in DT Kenny Clark and OLB Rashan Gary. This secondary is also filled with young talent, with former first-round pick CB Jaire Alexander, first-rounder S Darnell Savage, second-rounder CB Kevin King, second-rounder CB Josh Jackson, and S Adrian Amos. This secondary is a young, developing group, and if they continue to improve, this defense could turn into one of the scariest secondaries in the NFL. 

The Prediction

This will be a classic, physical NFC North rivalry game between the Bears and the Packers. This game is extremely important for both teams, as the Bears want to climb into the last Wild Card spot and the Packers are looking for the NFC First Round Bye. I think the Bears defense will play well, but their offense will hold them back. Rodgers has the talent, and the talent around him, to get this Packers offense to at least 21 points. I don’t think the Bears will be able to reach this number with their shaky offense, and will lead to a Packers victory on Sunday Night Football.

SHAWN’S PREDICTION: Packers 27 - 13

AJ’S PREDICTION: Packers 41 - 9

TIM’S PREDICTION: Packers 24 - 17

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