Good evening, everyone. The Green Bay Packers’ 2023 regular season starts on Sunday afternoon. The opponent on this afternoon will be the Chicago Bears. This game will be played at Soldier Field. The Packers have dominated this rivalry recently, but they will start a new era with Jordan Love at quarterback. Here is what the Packers need to do to win on Sunday afternoon and start the season at 1-0.
On offense, it can’t all be on Jordan Love’s shoulders. For starters, Christian Watson will be out with a hamstring issue. Second, Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon should be able to run the ball well against the Bears defense. Regardless of run or pass plays, the offensive line needs to do its job in creating the running lanes and protecting Jordan Love from any sacks. As long as Love is protected, he can throw to plenty of receivers, including the running backs, Romeo Doubs, Samori Toure, Jayden Reed, Luke Musgrave, and Malik Heath. The throws need to be accurate and the receivers need to catch each throw (other than throwaways). There is a chance that the Packers can do a trick play or two, but that might not be likely since they play the Bears again at the end of the season. If they do some trick plays, the Bears may be ready for it in the second matchup. Most importantly, the Packers need to be efficient on third downs and in the red zone. The time of possession battle needs to be won by Green Bay’s offense. Efficiency on third down and avoiding penalties and turnovers can help the Packers achieve this goal. Touchdowns are obviously better than field goals, so it is extremely important to score TDs every drive (plus I am nervous about the rookie kicker). There will be some ups and downs on offense on Sunday, but I have faith in Matt LaFleur and offensive coaching staff. I’m sure that they will get the players ready for whatever the Bears defense throws at them.
On defense, the key is to keep the Bears running game in check. Not only do they need to stop Khalil Herbert from gaining a lot of yards, but they need to keep QB Justin Fields from scrambling all over them. The defensive front, which includes Kenny Clark, Rashan Gary, Preston Smith, Brenton Cox Jr, Lukas Van Ness, and TJ Slaton, need to get past the blockers and get to the ball carrier for minimum gain. If the running game is kept in check, then the pass rush can get after Fields and pressure him to make mistakes. Those mistakes include interceptions that could be returned for a touchdown by the likes of Rasul Douglas and Jaire Alexander. Those two, plus the rest of the defensive backs, need to make sure the receivers (including DJ Moore) are covered well. Defensive coordinator Joe Barry needs to trust the players to do their job and not be too passive in his schemes. Stopping the Bears offense on third downs and limiting them to field goals in the red zone is important for the Packers defense on Sunday. Getting a couple of turnovers can help the Packers win on Sunday. I wouldn’t mind seeing a strip sack and a pick six by Green Bay’s defense. Any clutch plays by the defense will be welcomed. Everyone has to do their assignment regardless of what position on defense (plus offense and special teams).
On Special Teams, the Packers need to avoid mistakes that could quickly change the momentum of the game in Chicago’s favor. An example of this is allowing a punt or a field goal to get blocked by the Bears. To keep this from happening, the line protecting the kicks needs to block the defenders to keep them from doing so. Another example would be allowing the Bears to return a kickoff all the way for a touchdown. To keep that from happening, either the kicker needs to kick the ball out of the end zone for a touchback or the coverage unit needs to get to the return man and bring him down cleanly. On the other side, I have no doubt that Keisean Nixon will return plenty of kicks for large amounts of yards when given the chance. Nixon, plus any other return man that receives a kick or punt, needs to make smart decisions with the football. If there is no room for a return, he has to fair catch the ball cleanly with no fumbles. When he is called upon, rookie punter Daniel Whelon needs to punt each ball deep in Chicago territory. Rookie kicker Anders Carlson needs to make every kick when he is called upon for field goals or extra points. The long snapper needs to do his job in terms of accurate snaps, the holder (usually the punter) needs to get the ball ready (laces pointing at the goalpost) for Carlson to kick it good. I have no doubt that Rich Bisaccia will get his players ready for anything on Special Teams.
This will be an interesting game to watch. It’s the start of a new era, and I hope that it starts with a Packers win. Everyone needs to do their part on all sides of the football for the Packers to win this game. Regardless of the outcome, I pray that nobody on either team gets seriously injured on Sunday. I’ll be here for the recap of the game on either Monday or Tuesday. Have a great NFL Week One, everyone. Go Pack Go!
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