Jaylon Johnson and Robert Quinn were good
Johnson continued to emerge as a premier cornerback. He still has some ways to go but he held his own against the NFL’s best wide receiver in Davante Adams.
The Bears’ defensive coordinator Sean Desai had Johnson shadow Adams anytime Davante was not lined up in the slot. Johnson was effective against the league’s best.
The Packers were able to create better matchups for Davante Adams by moving him into the slot.
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) December 13, 2021
Adams caught just 2 of 5 targets for 19 yards when Jaylon Johnson was the nearest defender. Adams caught all 8 of his targets vs other defenders for 102 yards.#CHIvsGB | #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/9C3xzBLjbK
The Packers made an adjustment to put Adams in the slot where he was matched against the Bears’ less talented nickel cornerbacks. That is when Adams got most of his 121 yards and two touchdowns–Adams did beat Johnson one-on-one in the fourth quarter for that second touchdown.
Johnson’s nickel cornerback skills are not hones enough to cover Adams in that area. Johnson has shown a willingness to learn nickel coverage and a willingness to be great. He is one of the few reasons to watch this team over the last four games.
Quinn continued his comeback tour from his horrendous 2020 season with two more sacks. He is now up to 13 on the season. On his first sack of the game, Quinn gave Rodgers a taste of his own trash-talk medicine…
13th sack of the season for Robert Quinn ‼️#CHIvsGB | #ProBowlVote pic.twitter.com/O5vxtI23pq
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) December 13, 2021
Justin Fields was okay
Fields returned after missing two-plus games with cracked ribs. The rookie quarterback played, well, like a rookie quarterback with cracked ribs.
He completed 18 of 33 passes for 224 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
He threw an awful pick-six to Rasual Douglas in the second quarter that gave the Packers a 14-10 lead. Fields committed the rookie mistake by staring down Darnell Mooney. Butler read Fields’ eyes perfectly and jumped the route for the pick.
Fields showed a lot of poise by coming back the next series with a nice strike to Damiere Byrd who ran 54 yards for a touchdown.
https://twitter.com/chicagobears/status/1470219577552510978?s=21
Fields only had 124 yards passing if you take away Grant and Byrd’s yards after the catch-scoring touchdowns. He still has room to grow with his accuracy.
You could tell he was playing with bad ribs. The TV broadcast pointed out Fields’ wind-up makes his pass release time one of the longer ones in the league. He can make up for it with the velocity he puts on the pass. He clearly did not have his fastball with that injury.
He made some good decisions on when to take off and run. He was under pressure most of the game. Fields handled it the best he could.
https://twitter.com/nextgenstats/status/1470260926943154178?s=21