This week's Monday Night Football game was a divisional matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. Before the game, it probably seemed like more of a matchup than it was supposed to be, as many had anointed the Packers as the winners of the NFC in the preseason, and the Chicago Bears seemed like an afterthought in a division with both Green Bay and the Minnesota Vikings. Through two weeks both teams were leading the division at 2-0, and it was a showdown to get an early lead in the division as well as to become the only undefeated team in the conference. The home team Bears were looking like geniuses for signing Julius Peppers in the offseason, and the Packers had seemingly gotten lucky that the Eagles hadn't played Vick for all four quarters of the season opener, because the Eagles pressured them in a 27-20 victory by the Packers. Now the two teams looked a lot closer than was expected.
The game was memorable for three reasons: the first of those reasons is that the Bears beat the Packers in a tight game, 20-17. The second reason is that Devin Hester once again showed us his record-setting ability as a kick returner. The third reason, and probably the most discussed, was the remarkable, in fact record-setting, number of penalties by the Green Bay Packers.
The win by the Bears was a direct response of the second two factors. The Bears had a good game, but the other two things we learned were definitely influential in the victory. The whole game was pretty much close. Neither team did exceptionally well on offense; Aaron Rodgers was statistically the better QB, throwing for over 300 yards with one score and one interception. Jay Cutler wasn't far behind, going for 221 yards with a score and a pick. But the difference in QBs was that Rodgers played well on 45 attempts, connecting on 34. Jay Cutler connected on 16 of his 27 throws. Both teams finished under 100 yards rushing, and they were relatively even at 21 and 18 first downs, 18 being by the Bears. While the Packers defense may have been better overall, the difference maker in the game was Devin Hester.
Hester ran for his first touchdown return in three years on a punt in the fourth. He changed the scored from 7-10 to 14-10, giving the Bears the lead. This was reminiscent of his rookie season, when he set a record with three punt returns for TDs and two kick returns for TDs, making him the most productive kick returner in a single season. His electrifying ability to evade tackles and use his speed to bolt into the end zone was realized again by the Packers on Monday night, and the lead was in the hands of the Bears.
The Bears ended up winning after more mistakes by the Packers and a forced fumble by Brian Urlacher. But the "Super Bowl contending Packers" should have a lot more on their minds than just losing to their division rivals. They committed penalties ranging from small false starts to a head-to-head collision laid on to Jay Cutler to nullify an interception. Their 18 penalties, a team record, cost them a total of 152 yards. That's not the way a team wins games. The Bears defense may have played a good game, but perhaps the best defense in this one was the Packers' ability to commit penalties.
Overall, the game showed that the Bears might actually be contenders; they are the only 3-0 team in the NFC and one of just 3 teams in the league at 3-0 (the others are Kansas City and Pittsburgh). I for one feel as though any team that can make it to 3-0 should be viewed as a threat, and I'm sure the Bears feel that way about themselves. Despite the penalties committed by the Packers, they still played Bears football, grinding out a win and sending a message to the league.
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