Instant Takeaways: Packers escape Chicago with comeback win

It was a game that came with its ups and downs from the Green Bay Packers, but they came away with a win over the Chicago Bears, to improve to 5-8 on the season as they head into their bye week.

Here are my instant takeaways from the Packers performance against the Bears.

– As I alluded to, the Packers took some lumps, but as the more talented team in comparison to Chicago, they were able to overcome their miscues.

– This was a depleted Bears secondary and a defensive front that has struggled to stop the run and create pressure, yet you wouldn’t know that watching the Packers for much of Sunday’s game. There was a lot of Aaron Rodgers heaving the ball downfield for whatever reason, and a few what looked like predetermined throws. We also won’t know until we see the All-22, but the Packers receivers either weren’t getting open regularly, or Rodgers was holding on to the ball.

– In the midst of Rodgers chucking the ball, Green Bay still did utilize the run game, specifically leaning on AJ Dillon, and had a solid run-pass mix. Aaron Jones was dealing with a shin injury, although he was never officially ruled out. After a rough first half of the season, Dillon has looked much better as of late.

– One of the few bright spots this season is Christian Watson. He continues to come up big in key moments. The Packers needed to find their WR1, and they have in Watson, who has become a game-changer in Green Bay.

– Big plays allowed by the Packers’ defense sparked scores for the Bears. The first came on a read-option by Justin Fields that included another missed tackle and led to a 56-yard touchdown run. Then Fields connected with Equanimeous St. Brown, who beat Jaire Alexander in one-on-one coverage. Later in the game, Alexander was beaten again, that time by N’Keal Harry for a big gain—fortunately, that drive ended with a blocked field goal. It certainly hasn’t been a great season for Alexander, with today being a prime example of that, but he then came away with a massive interception to essentially end the game.

– Not surprisingly, Zach Tom started at left tackle without David Bakhtiari. This was the case in Week 9 against Detroit when Bakhtiari missed most of the second half, and it allowed the other four offensive linemen to stay intact. For the most part, in both the run and passing games, the offensive line looked good again.

– We knew Chicago was going to run the ball, and Green Bay utilized some heavier boxes as a result. The Bears weren’t ripping off steady runs of six and seven yards, in fact, it was tough sledding for the Bears at times, but they had several chunk plays.

– While not a shutdown performance by the Packers’ secondary, 129 of Fields total passing yards came on three completions. It’s not as if the Bears were moving the ball at will every drive, there were just a few frustrating plays by Green Bay.

– Kenny Clark had his best game in weeks. After experiencing quite a few double-teams since the Dallas game, he was able to take advantage of some one-on-ones against the Bears.

– As has been the case, Green Bay struggled to create pressure without Rashan Gary. Fields had a ton of time.

– It’s flown under the radar, but a bad snap each week from Jack Coco is becoming the norm.

– Randall Cobb was returning punts today for the Packers–not Keisean Nixon.

– While the passing game struggled, Allen Lazard was a reliable option for Aaron Rodgers.

– It hasn’t happened often this season, but the Packers won the turnover battle 3-0, and those proved to be three very important takeaways for this defense.

– It was a frustrating game to watch, but it ended with a long scoring drive by the offense to take the lead, a turnover by the defense, and then the offense again found the end zone to end it. A well-played fourth quarter by the Packers.