Bears @ Packers Recap - Packers play to potential, suffocate Bears

Green Bay was able to put it all together this weekend against the Bears, and the result was the most lopsided victory of the 2008 campaign, a 37-3 thumping that put the Packers in position to make a run at the playoffs. Coupled with the Vikings loss at Tampa Bay, the Packers win elevated Green Bay into a three-way tie with Minnesota and Chicago at 5-5. The Packers hold the edge and control their own destiny. Winning out would put the Packers in the playoffs regardless of what the Bears and Vikings do since the Packers would have the best record against division opponents, the first tiebreaker, at 5-1. But Mike McCarthy and his team are not thinking about playoff scenarios at this point in the season.

“One at a time,” McCarthy said, speaking in reference to his team’s chances during the rest of the season. “This is the level we want to play at, no doubt about it. Like I said earlier, I think we've played good football for the most part this year. We've lost some tough, tight games. Today, we were able to put it together for four quarters.”

Two of those tight games occurred in the last two weeks. The Packers first lost to the Tennessee Titans by a field goal in overtime and followed that up with a one point loss to the Vikings last week. In this game, the Packers gave no opportunity for such dramatics to resurface.

The Packers built a fourteen point halftime lead and allowed the Bears into the red zone just once the entire game. That drive ended in the Bears only three points of the game on a Robbie Gould field goal.

It was a performance largely based on the running game. Ryan Grant had his best game of the year, running for 145 yards on 25 carries for a gaudy 5.8 yard average. Brandon Jackson chipped in 50 yards of his own on 10 rushes that brought the running backs’ rushing total near 200 yards, accounting for nearly half of the Packers offense.

Aaron Rodgers and the Packers receivers accounted for the other half, with Rodgers spreading the ball around to nine different receivers, including six completions to tight end Donald Lee. Rodgers’ reliance on the tight end demonstrated a willingness to take what was available and not force passes into coverage. Such game management has allowed Rodgers to throw just six interceptions in his first 10 NFL starts. The sixth came on Sunday, into the hands of Brian Urlacher, but there is no doubt Rodgers is rounding into the quarterback the Packers hoped he would be.

On the other side of the football, Green Bay got a strong performance from another man new to his position. Taking over at middle linebacker for injured starter Nick Barnett, A.J. Hawk put on a nice performance in leading a Packers defense that held the Bears to just 234 yards of total offense. Hawk, along with safety Nick Collins and fellow linebacker Brandon Chillar, led the Packers with seven tackles. The combination of a great rushing attack and sound defense allowed the Packers to dominate time of possession. The Packers kept the ball for nearly fifteen minutes more than the Bears did.

Also of great import was the penalty situation. Green Bay was under a lot of scrutiny for the number of penalties they incurred through nine games, and two penalties on the first drive indicated that things may not be any better in week 11. But the Packers calmed down and had just four penalties for 40 yards the rest of the way. Moving forward, it is important for this team to continue to play at a high level every week, not just on occasion. The Packers truly have played solid football to this point and are a few plays from being 7-3 or 8-2. But they have put themselves in position to have success and more games like this one will get them into the playoffs, and from there anything can happen.

Report card:

Offense: A – The ground game finally busted out with a dominating performance that allowed the Packers to control the clock. Rodgers’ only mistake was underthrowing Driver, and that resulted in the Packers’ only turnover. The line did a much better job of protecting Rodgers than it did last week against Minnesota.

Defense: A – The defense did not give up a play over 20 yards until the fourth quarter, when they gave up plays of 41 and 21 yards, most likely due in large part to “prevent” defense. The defense scored yet again to bring the total up to seven on the year, cementing the win along the way.

Special Teams: B+ – Nothing to complain about or get overly excited about. Blackmon had limited opportunities to return kicks and was average. Frost only had to punt twice and did fine. Crosby bounced back from his last second miss last week and hit three of three field goals, including a 53 yarder in the second quarter.

Overall: A - It was a dominating performance when the Packers needed a win the most. All three phases really seemed to be clicking, keeping the Bears in check to the very end. The Packers can build on this win moving forward and need to prepare for a tough Monday Night opponent in New Orleans. If they can control the clock and avoid costly mistakes like they did against the Bears, Green Bay should be in good shape to make a run down the stretch.