The Chicago Bears lost again to their rivals, the Green Bay Packers, on Sunday. Rather than leaving fans extremely disappointed with this team, this loss created excitement that things are moving in the right direction in Chicago. The Bears’ performance in the loss may have been clearer than in many of their wins this season.
Here are my takeaways from the Bears’ first loss to rival Green Bay Packers since Week 8:
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The Bears can beat anyone on the field
In this game, the Bears didn’t have much success against the Packers defense in the first half. The Bears offense regained dominance as the second half ended. The performance wasn’t close to the Bears’ ground game against Philadelphia, but the Bears’ running game still kept the Packers defense on their heels. The Bears scored 17 points in the fourth quarter to tie the score at 21-21. Even in the loss, the success the Bears had in the second half was a huge plus for this team and their confidence against any future opponents.
Should the Bears trade DJ Moore?
It was another disappointing performance for DJ Moore, who has been ineffective for much of the season. That’s not what you want from one of the highest-paid players on the roster. Moore has four games left this season and has only 498 receiving yards this year. Considering games like this week against the Packers, that makes sense for a down year. Against Green Bay without Roman Odunze, Moore had three touchdowns and just one catch for -4 yards. With Rome Odunze being the Bears’ No. 1 receiver and Luther Burden also performing well, it would make sense for the Bears to try to get rid of DJ Moore’s contract next offseason.
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Ben Johnson isn’t overtaken by coaches
Matt LaFleur and the Packers coaching staff own the Bears as much as players like Aaron Rodgers. However, this game had a different feel. The first half started off very poorly, but in the second half Ben Johnson called it a great game. It felt like every snap he made made a difference, and the Bears’ offense had no problem getting down the field against the Packers’ offense. Ben Johnson even managed to engineer another game-winning play, but unfortunately, the execution wasn’t great this time. But this season, Ben Johnson has fulfilled his promise. The Bears are winning football games and these are the days when the Bears head coach is being coached around him by opposing head coaches. Ben Johnson proved in this game against the Packers that he belongs in the NFC North, and I believe he will lead the Bears to a lot of success against the Packers and other North opponents.
Bears’ injuries finally catch up with them
The Bears defense couldn’t make a tackle, and Jordan Love carved the Bears’ secondary like a pumpkin. The Bears have been able to survive without their main starting defense for much of the season, but that wasn’t the case against Green Bay. Jaylon Johnson is all over the field, but because he plays at a high pace and doesn’t appear in key situations, it feels like he’s just another key starter. The Bears’ secondary simply couldn’t mesh with the Packers’ receivers, especially Christian Watson. The absence of Roman Odunze in this game also affected the Bears’ passing ability. If the Bears can get healthier soon in the rematch against the Packers, the outcome could be very different.
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Bears are on Packers level
Even with the loss, the Bears still have a lot to hold their heads high about. The Bears are not dominated or owned by the Packers. The Bears played well but lost this game on the final play of the fourth quarter. There was nothing from this game to suggest the Packers were anywhere near the Bears. This game had a playoff feel to it, which is really exciting for the future of this rivalry. With two quarterbacks and two coaches, the days of one-sided competition are over.
This article originally appeared on Troy Wired: Reasons for optimism in Chicago Bears loss to Packers