Bears eye share of 1st place when Rodgers, Packers visit

Updated Oct. 14, 2021 6:33 p.m. ET

Associated Press

GREEN BAY (4-1) at CHICAGO (3-2)

Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, Fox

OPENING LINE: Packers by 4½, according to FanDuel SportsBook.

AGAINST THE SPREAD: Green Bay 4-1; Chicago 3-2.

SERIES RECORD: Green Bay leads 101-95-6.

LAST MEETING: Packers beat Bears 35-16 on Jan. 3 in Chicago.

LAST WEEK: Packers beat Cincinnati 25-22 in OT; Bears beat Las Vegas 20-9.

PACKERS OFFENSE: OVERALL (22), RUSH (21), PASS (16t), SCORING (13t).

PACKERS DEFENSE: OVERALL (6), RUSH (11), PASS (10), SCORING (19t).

BEARS OFFENSE: OVERALL (32), RUSH (9), PASS (32), SCORING (30).

BEARS DEFENSE: OVERALL (8), RUSH (12), PASS (12), SCORING (7).

TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Packers plus-3; Bears plus-3.

PACKERS PLAYER TO WATCH: WR Davante Adams. He caught 11 passes for a career-high 206 yards in the Packers’ 25-22 victory at Cincinnati. That’s the highest single-game total by a Packer since Jordy Nelson had 209 yards receiving against the New York Jets in 2014. He leads the NFL in catches (42) and yards receiving (579). Adams, a 2020 All-Pro, has caught a touchdown pass in each of the last three games he has played against the Bears, though injuries caused him to play against Chicago just once each of the last two seasons.

BEARS PLAYER TO WATCH: LB Khalil Mack. The three-time All-Pro is two shy of the league lead with five sacks, and he'll be going against a banged-up line. Mack has been dealing with a foot injury that has kept him out of practices in recent weeks. He participated on a limited basis in the final one leading up to the Raiders game and sat out practices Wednesday and Thursday this week.

KEY MATCHUP: Adams vs. Bears CB Jaylon Johnson. Coming off a promising rookie season, Johnson is tied for fourth in the NFL with six passes defensed. He faces a big challenge with four-time Pro Bowler Adams on the other side.

KEY INJURIES: Packers OT David Bakhtiari hasn’t played yet this season and will be sidelined again Sunday after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament on Dec. 31. ... Packers CB Jaire Alexander (shoulder), OLB Za’Darius Smith (back) and WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling (hamstring) also won’t play Sunday. ... OL Elgton Jenkins has missed three straight games. Jenkins was a Pro Bowl left guard last year who had been filling in for Bakhtiari at left tackle until he hurt his ankle. C Josh Myers, a second-round pick from Ohio State, was dealing with a finger injury. ... CB Kevin King injured a shoulder against the Bengals on Sunday. His absence would be bad news for a secondary already missing Jaire Alexander. ... Bears QB Justin Fields suffered knee and rib injuries in last week's game and missed a few plays. He was a full participant in practice on Wednesday. ... The Bears could be missing their top two running backs, with David Montgomery (sprained knee) placed on injured reserve prior to last week's game and Damien Williams going on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Thursday. ... Chicago is down an offensive lineman after placing RT Germain Ifedi (knee) on IR on Wednesday. ... DT Akiem Hicks (groin) missed last week's game. ... WR Allen Robinson (ankle) is also dealing with an injury.

SERIES NOTES: The Packers have won 19 of their past 22 meetings with the Bears, including playoff matchups. … The Packers are 21-5 against the Bears in games QB Aaron Rodgers has started. In one of the losses, he left with an injury after the opening series.

STATS AND STUFF: Green Bay has won four straight since a season-opening 38-3 loss to New Orleans in Jacksonville. ... Adams has 67 receptions and Randall Cobb has 66 catches against the Bears. No other active players have that many career receptions against Chicago. … Packers coach Matt LaFleur has a 30-7 regular-season record. The only coaches to get to 30 wins faster are Guy Chamberlin (35 games) and George Seifert (36). … Packers LB De’Vondre Campbell has two interceptions and a fumble recovery. All three of his takeaways have come in the fourth quarter or overtime. … Packers CB Eric Stokes has seven passes defensed to rank third in the NFL and to lead all rookies. … The Packers have won their last six road games against NFC North opponents. That’s the longest road divisional winning streak in franchise history, according to Elias Sports Bureau. … Bears senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine was Green Bay’s defensive coordinator from 2018-20. … Chicago has won two straight and would tie Green Bay for the NFC North lead by beating the Packers. ... Though he threw his first career TD, Fields passed for just 111 yards last week. ... RB Damien Williams ran for 64 yards and rookie Khalil Herbert rushed for 75 on 18 carries against Las Vegas. ... K Cairo Santos has made a club-record 34 consecutive regular-season field goals — the league's longest active streak.

FANTASY TIP: Rodgers has carved up the Bears throughout his career, with a 105.3 rating in 26 games against them.

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