BEARS DOWN

Turnovers Key Strong Second Half as Pack Overwhelms Chicago

by: Michael Filipelli

The Green Bay Packers finally found their offense. The juggernaut that was supposed to be had been dormant so far this season, and last week against the Detroit Lions it vanished altogether. So where did the Packers find their offense? Where else?

Chicago.

The Bears were flying high at 2-1 after holding off the underwhelming New York Jets last week and jumped all over the Packers defense from the opening kickoff. Jay Cutler started as Jay Cutler always does against the Packers. He hit virtually every throw from every angle, even slinging one under Clay Matthews’s outstretched arms for a completion. The opening drive took over 6 minutes and was capped by Cutler’s 6 yard toss to Brandon Marshall to stake Da Bears to a 7 – 0 lead.

In a radio interview earlier this week Aaron Rodgers had a subtle message for the fans that had begun to chew their fingernails to the first knuckle. “Relax” Said Rodgers.

When Rodgers says something as deceptively defiant as that he is perfectly capable of backing it up. Not with his mouth but with one of the best – if not the best – arm in NFL. Rodgers took a little less time off the clock on the ensuing drive in leading the Pack back. Eddie Lacy finished off the Packers responding drive with a 2 yard TD blast. Lacy was in single back formation most of the game and was used exclusively. In spite of James Starks’ great early showings Mike McCarthy challenged Lacy this week by saying “Eddie’s got to play better.”

After a fumble and safety last week Lacy was the workhorse in the Packers offense on Sunday. After the Bears next drive stalled and they settled for a 23 yard FG from Robbie Gould Rodgers looked like the Aaron Rodgers of old, or at least the past 5 years. When Rodgers hit his favorite target Jordy Nelson for a lead taking score the game looked as if it would be a last-one-with-the-ball-wins affair. Cutler did his part by marching Chicago right back up the field and found his other favorite target Alshon Jeffery to retake the lead at 17- 14.

At that point the Bears and Head Coach Marc Trestman tried to get cute. When the ensuing kickoff became a surprise onside attempt it blew up in Trestman’s face. The Packers not only recovered the ball but the special teams also cut the field in half for Rodgers with enough time on the clock to strike yet again.

Say this about Rodgers – he does have a flair for the dramatic. The Pack regained the lead in this yo-yo change of leads when Randall Cobb, the same Randall Cobb that earlier this week said he was “…embarrassed…” by his performance and shouldered the yoke by adding “I’ve got to do a better job of getting open.”

Cobb not only got open he left S Ryan Mundy dizzy when he caught an 8 yarder to take the lead once again from their hoists. It was not the only time Cobb would have Bears defenders literally grasping at air with his ankle-breaking moves that made would-be tacklers whiff almost laughably.

Football is anything but conventional. Sometimes the quirkiest of plays that can be defined in fractions of inches can impact not only the moment but the game and can swing momentum in the blink of an eyelash.

So it was when Cutler marched the Bears right back down the field. The Packers defense had been struggling to clamp down on the Bears Matt Forte and his runs that chewed up yardage in big chunks and had no answer for Cutler who looked unfamiliarly comfortable firing passes. But there is always something about Cutler whenever the Bears square off against the Pack that just screams “…wait for it… wait for it…”

Cutler kept his part of “anything you can do I can do better” with Rodgers and took Da Bears back into scoring range with seconds on the clock remaining in the first half. When it comes to playing the Packers the Bears have done more to aid Green Bay’s cause than their own. With almost no time left on the clock and no timeouts Cutler rifled a dart to TE Martellus Bennett who grabbed it at the 1 yard line with no time showing.

But before Bennett could right himself and step another 3 feet into the end zone the Packers secondary closed and swarmed like a hoard of Huns on an unsuspecting village. As Bennett turned he was met by Ha Ha Clinton- Dix who latched on to Bennett until more help arrived from A.J. Hawk, Micah Hyde and Casey Hayward. Bennett desperately tried to thrust the ball over the goal line that was literally fractions of an inch close as he struggled to maintain control of the ball. The Packers defense was successful in yanking Bennett, the ball, and although they didn’t know it at the time, the game itself back. After an interminable booth review the review confirmed the call on the field of no touchdown. In an ironic twist of good luck both Hyde and Hayward’s helmets were right at the level of the ball, obscuring any clear shot to review the play. As the Bears and Cutler sullenly exited for halftime the Packers defense was suddenly energized. Cutler had moved the Bears in time consumptive drives that ended in scores and yet the defense somehow rose when they needed to the most to go storming off with the Packers holding an improbable 21 – 17 lead.

Somewhere George Halas and Vince Lombardi are watching these games and it wouldn’t be a shock if Halas was heard hurling expletives at the Bears while Lombardi sat back with a confident grin. Of course Vince would have already chewed a few butts at halftime on defense because the defense that took the field for the second took the field from the Bears in the process.

The time and space Cutler enjoyed in the first half had suddenly disappeared. The pass rush intensified as Datone Jones recorded a sack. Cutler finally reverted to being Jay Cutler once again when Tramon Williams jumped a slant route and a Cutler fastball ricocheted off his shoulder and was snagged mid-air by the opportunistic but less-than-100% Clay Matthews who took the pick about as far as his sore groin would allow. Matthews had exited the game last week with a groin injury and was a game day decision to play. Rather than over extend or risk a further injury from a tackle Matthews wisely stepped out of bounds. He turned the ball and the game over to Rodgers and the now red-hot offense.

Just that quick Rodgers found Nelson again from 22 and everyone in Chicago went suddenly silent. The inevitable collapse was on display and as Cutler melted down, so did the Bears. Cutler tossed his second pick of the day when it looked for all the world that he was targeting the Packers Sam Shields who gladly took the perfect strike and sprinted down the sideline. The replay showed that Cutler’s intended target Brandon Marshall not only hadn’t turned around he wasn’t even in the area code of the throw. Whether it was a missed route or not Cutler fired one directly between the 3 and the 7 on Shields’ jersey. So stunned was Shields his eyes were wide as saucers as the easiest pick he will ever see was safely in his hands.  Another drive, another Rodgers to Cobb scoring strike and the rout was on.

Whatever the Bears were doing that worked for them in the first half was gone. The failure of the Packers defense to shut down Marshall and Jeffery in the first half was replaced a tight coverage and yards grudgingly given. Forte also found less running room and the Packers pitched a near-perfect shout in the second half. It was only after the Bears had dug the grave too deep they were forced into a passing only game, a matchup that pitted him against Rodgers, and a matchup that Cutler has no shot of winning.

Rodgers did all the little things right. His throws were dead on accurate and placed in a place where only his receiver could make a play. In the process he began to expand his targets. Rookie TE Richard Rodgers had a couple nice catches, one for a long gainer of 43 yards early. Fellow rookie Davante Adams had some of his own and Cobb finally added a missing element in the attack. While Lacy was held to 48 yards on 17 attempts, a paltry 2.8 yds/ carry average his relentless pounding in the middle of the line made it impossible for the Bears to ignore the run. DE Jared Allen missed the game due to pneumonia and it was yet another cruel twist that haunted the Bears.

For his part Rodgers posted numbers that moved from pedestrian back into Mr. Rodgers neighborhood. For the day Rodgers was 22 for 28 with 302 yards, 4 TD’s and most importantly only 1 sack. Rodgers also gained 8 yards to grab that kept the Chicago D reeling.

The Packers are now officially back in the hunt in the NFC North and now have to enjoy the W, get a good night’s sleep and then forget and prepare to host Minnesota Thursday night in yet another early, key contest.

In many respects it now looks as if the veterans ‘pre-season’ is now over and they can play big boy football. And as long as Rodgers stays healthy all he has to do is to continue to play like Aaron Rodgers and all will be right in Titletown.