3. Khalil Mack will be an issue for awhile
Although he wasn’t expected to play much on Sunday night, Mack was all over the place on the Bears defense.
In fact, he made some history with the full stat line he produced in the first half.
#Bears PR: Khalil Mack is the first NFL player since 1982 with a sack, interception, touchdown, forced fumble, and fumble recovery in one half of play (Lawrence Taylor at Detroit, Nov. 25).
— Chris De Luca (@ChrisDeLuca) September 10, 2018
Unfortunately for the Packers, his monster first half may be a preview of what is to come down the road. For the vast majority of the first half, Mack seemingly handled Bryan Bulaga and created penetration into the backfield more times than not. That penetration was key in forcing both of his turnovers against DeShone Kizer and Rodgers’ slow start in the first half.
KHALIL MACK! 💪💪💪
— NFL (@NFL) September 10, 2018
INCREDIBLE. #CHIvsGB #DaBears
📺: NBC https://t.co/RJMgWu78kg
However, once the o-line settled in they were able to contain Mack just a little bit longer. Regardless, we have now seen what kind of game changer Mack really is. With that, the Packers will need a better plan moving forward to try and deny Mack of any kind of performance that he showed in the first half and pretty consistently all game.
More chipping will be needed from tight ends and/or slot receivers to slow down Mack’s pass attack. This means Jimmy Graham and Marcedes Lewis may need to get their hands dirty when these two teams meet again during week 15.