Green Bay Packers v. Bears: 5 Key Questions Prior to Week 17
By Paul Bretl
Here are five key questions heading into the Green Bay Packers’ Week 17 matchup with the Chicago Bears.
The Green Bay Packers and their fans learned some devastating news on Thursday evening as they will be without All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari for the remainder of the season after he reportedly tore his ACL. This is undoubtedly a huge blow to a legitimate Super Bowl contender, but there is still a crucial game to be played on Sunday.
Both the Packers and the Chicago Bears have a lot on the line this week. With a win, Green Bay clinches the NFC’s top seed, and the road to the Super Bowl goes through Lambeau Field. However, a loss and they could very likely end up as the three seed. Meanwhile, the Bears have had a bit of a resurgence over the last month, and with a win of their own, they’ll clinch the final playoff spot in the NFC.
So as we turn our full focus to this pivotal Week 17 matchup between two rivals, as I often do, I have my five key questions heading into the game. And whatever the answers to these questions end up being, that will likely determine Sunday’s winner.
Can the Green Bay Packers stop the run again?
This is a Packers’ run defense that has been trending in the right direction since they faced the Minnesota Vikings in Week 8. And that culminated this past Sunday with what was easily their best performance of the season.
The NFL’s leading rusher, Derrick Henry, who was averaging nearly 120 rushing yards per game this season, was held to just 98 yards, 4.2 yards per carry, and his longest run was only 10 yards. The Green Bay defense did a fantastic job of tackling, swarming to the ball carrier, and we saw more heavy boxes from Mike Pettine.
This week, slowing David Montgomery is going to be a key component to winning this game. A big part of the Bears’ offensive resurgence as of late is that they are relying more heavily on Montgomery. Over their four-game win streak, he is averaging 5.1 yards per rush, over 100 yards per game, and has totaled six rushing touchdowns. The Packers will need to contain Montgomery and put the game in Mitch Trubisky’s hands.