The Chicago Bears' week one game will be bigger than most, considering they are taking on the Green Bay Packers. This game has major implications due to the division records, and this feels like a time when the Bears have to make a move now that Aaron Rodgers is out.
Still, the Packers have more history than just the quarterback position on their side. If the Bears do want to start a new tradition of being the better team, who are the three Green Bay Packers that must be isolated and beaten?
3. Will the Chicago Bears see the Rashan Gary of old?
Rashan Gary is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL when he is healthy and going at his best. However, he only played in nine games this past season due to a torn ACL. This is devastating because it can often take 11 months or more to get back to being your old self after that type of injury.
So, Gary may be out there and will technically be healthy, but there are definitely questions about how effective he can be and what type of workload he will get.
If the Chicago Bears see the Gary of old, they could be in for a long day. If Gary looks like he is just getting back to speed, it could spare the team in a big way. The Green Bay Packers can move Rashan Gary around, but he often lines up against opposing right tackles. That means spending a lot of his day against Darnell Wright, the rookie from Tennessee.
Wright can have a fine career, but he could struggle mightily if he has to open his career against one of the best rushers in the NFL. At the same time, if Wright gets out of this game without issue, fans have to be excited about what is about to come.
2. Do the Green Bay Packers have a breakout star in Christian Watson?
Christian Watson is the definition of a hit-or-miss player. On his best days, he has 107 yards and three touchdowns. At his worst, one catch for one yard is a game he has on the stat sheet. Against the Chicago Bears, he had three catches for nine yards and then three catches for 48 yards and a touchdown. He can do a lot of different things with three catches.
So, containing him and making sure that it is not one of his 100-yard games or two touchdown games will be the key to the game. Both Tyrique Stevenson and Jaylon Johnson will get a heavy dose of Watson.
For Johnson, these are the players he thrives against. He struggles when players are shiftier and quicker, but straight-line speed and a limited route tree is where he thrives. For Stevenson, it will be a test. Watson excels with double moves and creating space down the sideline. He has elite speed, so even if Stevenson bites on play-action, he will be in trouble.
Beyond that, the safeties, especially Eddie Jackson has to shift his side to cover for the speed of Watson. However, this does leave te other cornerbacks exposed without much protection against Jayden Reed, and Romeo Doubs. That is the impact Watson can have on games. The Chicago Bears must be prepared.
1. Jordan Love will decide how the Chicago Bears perform against the Green Bay Packers for years to come
This one is pretty obvious, and if we are being honest, we have no idea how this will go. Even if you did not like Jordan Love going back to Utah State, you have to accept that he may have changed or grown in that time and could be a different player. So, we really do not know how he will look when the team is his. We do know it will be what dictates this game, though.
Beyond that, the defense he is about to see is completely new. Three of the top four defensive lineman and six of the top eight are all new faces. The top two linebackers are new, as is a starting outside cornerback. No matter what happens, this will be a learning moment. Is the defense so poor that Jordan Love carves them, or is he that good?
Does the defense step up and shut him down, or is he that poor? We often have an idea of how a defense can do against a certain quarterback. However, the major unknowns when it comes to Jordan Love, and the Chicago Bears defense is noteworthy and will be the determining factor in a tight game.