1 day Ago By Colleen Kane
The 4-12 Chicago Bears will play the 14-2 Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in a Week 18 matchup. Here’s what you need to know before kickoff ( noon, Fox-32 ). Packers quarterback Jordan Love dives just short of the end zone while being tackled by Bears safety Kevin Byard during the fourth quarter on Nov.
17, 2024. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune) There’s more than one double-digit losing streak at play here.
Yes, the Bears have lost 10 in a row. But they’ve also lost 11 in a row to the Packers dating to the 2018 season. No Bears player on the active roster has beaten the Packers while in Chicago, and for longer-tenured players such as tight end Cole Kmet and cornerback Jaylon Johnson that’s maddening.
“F−−− ’em. That’s how I’m feeling,” Johnson said when asked about his mindset. “I’m going to try to go out with a bang.
It’s the last opponent on the schedule, so I’m looking forward to it.” Read more here . Luke Getsy — the former Bears OC — is helping out the Packers as they prepare for the playoffs NFC’s No.
1 seed comes down to Vikings-Lions showdown at Detroit in Week 18 Jaylon Johnson is the Bears’ lone Pro Bowl representative Bears tight end Cole Kmet walks off the field after a loss to the Seahawks on Dec. 26, 2024, at Soldier Field. (Eileen T.
Meslar/Chicago Tribune) As the Bears embark on yet another coaching search to begin 2025, what do players want from the next leader of the team? What qualities can stabilize and energize this frustrated locker room? “We need a culture shift for sure,” tight end Cole Kmet said without hesitating. “And I know a lot of people get caught up in wanting this hot name or that hot name. But I would hope that management upstairs would just be looking for the best possible head coach.
” That coach, Kmet believes, should have an immediate understanding of how to raise the bar inside Halas Hall, how to establish standards and expectations and make certain everyone involved upholds them. No questions asked. No wiggle room allowed.
Read more here . Bears Q&A: Would retaining GM Ryan Poles deter a top coaching candidate? Are Pete Carroll and Kliff Kingsbury legitimate options? Column: Why Pete Carroll makes sense as a candidate for the Bears coaching job Bears quarterback Caleb Williams walks onto the field before the game against the Seahawks at Soldier Field on Dec. 26, 2024.
(Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune) Caleb Williams has one game left in his rookie season. When he takes the field Sunday at Lambeau Field, he’ll become the first Chicago Bears quarterback since Jay Cutler in 2009 to start every game.
Williams will look to deliver a strong performance that creates belief and momentum heading into the 2025 offseason. He also will try to help the Bears break two ignominious losing streaks: a 10-game slide this season that began Oct. 27 at Washington and an 11-game skid against the rival Packers that dates to the 2019 season opener.
But a real eye test is coming soon for Williams. Read more here . Column: Caleb Williams has flashed enough to give the Bears hope.
But, boy, did they botch his rookie season. True or false? Bears QB Caleb Williams deserves more blame for his league-high sack total 4 things we learned from the Bears, including Caleb Williams on ‘stupid’ offensive line narrative Tracking Caleb Williams: How the Bears QB is performing in his rookie season Bears safety Kevin Byard celebrates after getting an interception during the third quarter against the Panthers at Soldier Field on Oct. 6, 2024.
(Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune) Kevin Byard’s first season with the Bears has been a challenge. The veteran safety won’t dispute that.
But Byard has a unique perspective on playing through the Bears’ 2024 trials as he prepares to start his 17th game of the season against the Packers at Lambeau Field. It will be his 147th consecutive regular-season game played. Now in his ninth NFL season, Byard, 31, hasn’t missed a game, aside from an October 2023 trade from the Titans to the Eagles that resulted in his having two bye weeks.
The streak is a testament to his physical durability, his work to maintain his health — and a mental fortitude that has helped him persist despite considerable adversity. Read more here . Bears general manager Ryan Poles speaks with the media during a press conference with Chicago Bears President Kevin Warren at Halas Hall on Dec.
2, 2024. (Stacey Wescott/ Chicago Tribune) When the book closes on the season, Bears President/CEO Kevin Warren and GM Ryan Poles must dive into their most important work — identifying the changes, hires and moves that need to happen in order for them to turn the page not only on 2024, but also to a new era. If Poles remains in his post — as Warren said he would last month — his job will include learning from his mistakes over the previous three seasons to build a coaching staff and roster that are better equipped to elevate Williams in 2025.
Poles has a lot from which to learn. With that in mind, here are five New Year’s resolutions that the GM must consider to make next year a better experience for all involved with the Bears. Column: 2024 sucked for Chicago sports.
Here’s one last look back at another lost year for fans. Read more here . Chicago Tribune file Bears coach George Halas and Packers coach Vince Lombardi at Lambeau Field in 1964.
Except for two years — 1922 and 1982 — the Bears and Packers have played each other every season since 1921. They are the two oldest teams in continuous operation in the National Football League with a rivalry spanning 207 regular season games and two playoff meetings. The Packers hold a slight lead in the series with 108 wins to the Bears’ 95, with six ties.
Here’s a look back, decade by decade, at how the teams have fared and the highlights — and lowlights — of their matchups. Read more here ..
