3 things to watch for when the Chicago Bears host the Green Bay Packers

The Chicago Bears begin their 2023 NFL regular season against their bitter rival, the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field.

This game will certainly have a different feel now that Aaron Rodgers is on the New York Jets. Rodgers claimed to own the Bears and he was not wrong with his career 24-5 record against Chicago.

Jordan Love is now the starting quarterback after the Packers traded Rodgers in the offseason. This will be the first since November 2017 that the Bears faced a Packers starting quarterback that was not Aaron Rodgers.

The result was Chicago losing like many Bears and Packers matchups since 1992.

Brett Hundley guided the Pack to a 23-16 victory at Soldier Field while Rodgers was out with an injury.

You have to go back to 1991 for the last time the Chicago Bears faced the Green Bay Packers without Rodgers or Brett Favre on the team.

Needless to say, the Packers have been kicking the Bears’ behind since Favre came to Green Bay in 1992.

Now that Love is the starting quarterback, Chicago has hope that the rivalry can swing back into the Bears’ favor. However, there is some fear that Love can carry on the MVP quarterback tradition in Green Bay and continue the Pack’s domination of the Bears.

This game is more than just another chapter in the NFL’s longest-running feud. It is a chance for the Bears to snap their 10-game losing streak from last season.

The Chicago Bears went 3-14 mostly by design. It helped the franchise land the No. 1 overall pick that was leveraged into acquiring wide receiver D.J. Moore and a boatload of draft picks from the Carolina Panthers.

This is also a division game early in the season. The Bears and Packers both have fringe playoff hopes depending on how certain players perform and if injuries do not ravage the teams. Losing a division contest to start the season puts one of these teams in an early hole for the NFC North title.

Still, this game might be more important for the Chicago Bears and their fans’ psyche if they can find a way to win. 30 years of winning just 15 games against a foe will do that to an organization and its supporters. Winning this game would mean exorcising some demons and putting in seeds of doubt to the Packers that their days of running the rivalry are over. Also, it would be nice to beat the Packers for the first time since 2018.

These three key areas need to break the Chicago Bears’ way to get that victory.