Green Bay answered a week of rivalry talk with a decisive 31-7 victory over Chicago at Lambeau Field on Sunday, using an aggressive downfield attack to draw level with the Bears at 3-2 in the NFC North.
The Packers and Bears remain behind the unbeaten Minnesota Vikings, who lead the division at 5-0. Their next meeting will come on Christmas Day in Chicago, more than two months after a first matchup that intensified an already heated rivalry.
Packers turn pregame talk into a statement
- Before the game, Bears wide receiver Luther Burden III said Chicago wanted to beat Green Bay badly enough to make the Packers quit.
- Packers coach Matt LaFleur kept the public message centered on his own team, but Green Bay’s offensive approach showed no shortage of intent. Jordan Love was repeatedly given chances to attack deep downfield.
- The Packers opened with a flea-flicker designed for tight end Tucker Kraft, then continued to push the ball to Christian Watson and Matthew Golden.
- Watson finished with six receptions, 143 yards and two touchdowns. Golden matched him with six catches and added 123 receiving yards.
- Green Bay’s defense and offense combined to put the game out of reach in a 31-7 result, prompting linebacker Zaire Franklin to respond afterward to Burden’s earlier remarks.
Franklin, acquired by Green Bay in an offseason trade and not on last season’s Packers team that lost the NFC wild-card game at Soldier Field, criticized unnamed Bears players for talking about forcing opponents to quit before making enough impact in the league. He said the Bears were the side that stopped competing Sunday.
Burden caught six passes for 47 yards while Tyson Bagent started at quarterback in place of the injured Caleb Williams. Burden did not address reporters after the game.
Watson said Green Bay had effectively reversed the Bears’ challenge, while stressing that the Packers’ main focus remained their own performance.
Love joins rare company with deep-ball performance
Love’s vertical passing day placed him in unusual statistical territory. He completed five throws that traveled at least 30 yards in the air, matching Ben Roethlisberger as the only quarterbacks to reach that total in a game since ESPN began tracking the figure in 2006.
Love also became the first Packers quarterback since Brett Favre in 2003 to complete at least four passes of 40 or more yards in one game.
Franklin said LaFleur’s consistent message has been about Green Bay improving itself rather than engaging with Chicago’s comments. Still, he said Packers players noticed the public remarks and other actions directed at them.
Sideline moment adds to rivalry edge
The game was largely controlled, but one sequence brought additional tension. After Golden returned a punt out of bounds near the Bears sideline, Chicago kicker Cairo Santos appeared to extend his leg toward Golden as the receiver tried to return to the field.
Golden said Santos did try to trip him, though he declined to escalate the incident and said he had nothing further to add.
Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson called the matchup personal and said Chicago could not expect Green Bay to ease up with a lead. He said the Bears needed to keep fighting for their pride and for the names on both sides of the uniform.
LaFleur extends unbeaten run against Chicago
The result gave LaFleur 11 consecutive victories over the Bears as Green Bay’s head coach. His counterpart, Ben Johnson, added fuel to the rivalry after taking the Chicago job in 2025, having said he enjoyed beating LaFleur twice each season while serving as Detroit’s offensive coordinator.
The Bears won two of three contests against the Packers last season, including the playoff victory at Soldier Field. After that postseason win, Johnson used an expletive directed at Green Bay during his locker-room celebration.
LaFleur has declined to answer Johnson publicly, saying the game should remain centered on players. Packers center Sean Rhyan said his coach maintained a professional approach and let the team’s performance speak during the game.
LaFleur praised the connection between his players and coaching staff after the win, saying the group supports one another, avoids finger-pointing through adversity and continues searching for ways to improve individually for the benefit of the team.
He said he loves the locker room and staff but emphasized that Sunday counted as only one win, with Green Bay needing to move on quickly to its next game.
