The Green Bay Packers have made a seamless transition from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love, who has waited patiently behind Rodgers for three years before becoming a starter in 2023.
In last season's opener, he and the Packers destroyed the Bears in Chicago. A new quarterback with the same result. While the Packers stumbled to a 2-5 start, they still finished 9-8 and slid into the playoffs by beating the Bears again in the last game of the season. What was even worse, they destroyed the NFC East Champion Dallas Cowboys in the opening round of the playoffs, 48-32. Then they came very close to pulling another upset when they lost to the San Francisco 49ers the following week. Had it not been for poor defense and kicking game, they would have won the game.
The 2023 season was another harsh reminder for the Bears fans how much gap still exists between the Bears and the Packers.
The Bears have improved significantly on both sides of the ball thanks to the draft last week. But is it enough to close the gap and even beat them this upcoming season? Let's take a look at the Packers and see who they drafted last week.
Their general manager, Brian Gutekunst, who has been with the organization since 1999, has steadily climbed up the organization. He became the general manager in 2018 replacing Ted Thompson when he was diagnosed with a neurodegene
Though he has his share of misses, just like every other general manager, he has been very solid with his draft picks. Among the players he has selected that turned into key contributors are below.
Player Name | Position | Drafted Year |
|---|---|---|
Jaire Alexander | Cornerback | 2018 |
Rashan Gray | Edge Rusher | 2019 |
Elgton Jenkins | Offensive Line | 2019 |
Jordan Love | Quarterback | 2020 |
Josh Myers | Center | 2021 |
Quay Walker | Linebacker | 2022 |
Devonte Wyatt | Defensive Tackle | 2022 |
Christian Watson | Wide Receiver | 2022 |
Romeo Doubs | Wide Receiver | 2022 |
Zach Tom | Offensive Line | 2022 |
Luke Van Ness | Edge Rusher | 2023 |
Jayden Reed | Wide Receiver | 2023 |
Luke Musgrave | Tight End | 2023 |
Tucker Kraft | Tight End | 2023 |
The Packers have multiple players who have become starters or regular contributors in the last two drafts after sporadic results in the first four years under Gutekunst. The Bears fans are definitely familiar with some of these names because it seems like they have had big games against the Bears.