The Green Bay Packers have dove into their offseason plans, but they must be seething over what the Chicago Bears did to them last season. The Bears picked up two important victories over the past year. After watching Ben Johnson disrespect the franchise after a playoff win, the rivalry between the two division rivals is as strong as ever.
This makes the offseason not only about what the Packers are doing. It’s also about what the Bears are doing. While Green Bay is set on climbing to the top of the division again, they also could take joy in seeing the Bears’ secondary take a big step back after the initial wave of free agency.
The Packers didn’t have a lot of trouble with Dennis Allen’s defense last season as Jordan Love threw for 634 yards, seven touchdowns and one interceptions during their three meetings. Malik Willis also got in 121 yards and a touchdown in place of Love during a Week 16 matchup. But the doors are open for the Packers to have even more success after Chicago’s offseason departures.
Bears Make Packers’ Life Easier After Secondary Departures
Some of the Bears’ losses were expected, including starting cornerback Nahshon Wright. While Wright forced eight total turnovers as a successful reclamation project in Chicago, he also was barbecue chicken in coverage, allowing 60 catches for 800 yards and eight touchdowns with eight penalties on 93 targets according to Pro Football Focus.
Those numbers made it less of a surprise when he signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract with the New York Jets. But it also threw oft-injured corners Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon and Tyrique Stevenson, who was benched in the closing weeks of the season, back to their starting roles. The situation is more dire behind them as Terell Smith and Zah Frazier also missed the 2025 season due to injury, and it’s compounded by even more turnover in the secondary.
Jaquan Brisker (Pittsburgh Steelers) and Kevin Byard (New England Patriots) left Chicago on one-year deals in free agency. While the Bears were able to snag Coby Bryant from the Seattle Seahawks, they still have an opening at the other spot, which could be reserved for a rookie taken in the upcoming draft. Even if Chicago gets a top prospect like Toledo’s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, there could be a learning curve entering the NFL, which could make them significantly weaker than they were a year ago.
This is great news for a Packers team that didn’t struggle against the Bears while the rest of the league couldn’t stop giving them the football. Chicago ranked first in interceptions (23) and turnover rate (18.3%) last season, but they also ranked 22nd in passing yards allowed per game (227.2) and 27th in yards per attempt (7.6). Even if Johnson and Gordon return to form, it may still lead the Bears to bleed yardage, and the turnover numbers could come crashing back to earth, flipping the field position battle back to the Packers.
The Packers should have a team worthy of Super Bowl contention next season and could be better against Chicago after Tucker Kraft missed both meetings last year with a torn ACL. With a weakened secondary, that task should become easier and could give Green Bay a leg up in their two meetings next season.