Chicago Bears: 5 Players Who Will Key Victory over Packers

The Chicago Bears sit at a crossroads with their 2017 season. Odds say they don’t make the playoffs, but jobs could be on the line in this game.

Nobody needs prodding to get hyped. It’s the Green Bay Packers. This is the most important game of the year for both teams. The Bears are 3-5. A loss would likely start the ball rolling on John Fox getting fired at seasons’ end. The Packers are 4-4. A loss would end any fleeting hopes of catching the Minnesota Vikings in the race for the NFC North crown, and a possible Aaron Rodgers return.

For the Bears this game is also about redemption. Their 35-14 humiliation a few weeks back was bad enough, but it also ended Chicago’s long mastery of the rivalry with Green Bay taking the all-time lead in wins. Taking this game would tie it back up. For that to happen they need several players to play well. Here are the five who stand out most.

QB Mitch Trubisky

The quarterback will always make this list. Still it’s especially true for Trubisky when it comes to Green Bay. Part of why the Packers have enjoyed such a long streak of success against the Bears recently is because Jay Cutler had a terrible habit of giving them extra scoring chances. He had 22 interceptions against them. Putting up big numbers is not important for the rookie. He must continue to do what he’s done to this point and that’s protect the football.

RB Jordan Howard

The Packers defense has had a hard time stopping the run this season, allowing at least 100 yards in six of their eight games. Jordan Howard though only had 53 on 18 carries in the last meeting. A big part of why was because Green Bay stacked the box with eight, nine and even 10 players during the game. It was a clear indication of how little they respected Mike Glennon and the passing game. If Trubisky can change that even slightly, Howard could have an opportunity.

OLB Leonard Floyd

Aaron Rodgers was able to negate much of the Bears pass rush last time because of his ability to get the ball out quick. Brett Hundley does not have that same prowess. Worse still the teams’ starting right tackle Brian Bulaga was lost for the season last week to a knee injury. This recipe seems like a perfect blend for Leonard Floyd to have a big day. The outside linebacker has five sacks in the past five games. Hundley’s slower processing speed and having limited edge protection could mean an ugly outcome for him.

ILB Nick Kwiatkoski

One of the frustrating developments coming out of the bye week for Chicago is the injury setback to inside linebacker Danny Trevathan. He was playing his best football of his Bears career since returning from suspension. Now he’s laid up with a calf injury. This will push second-year man Nick Kwiatkoski into the starting lineup. He’s recently returned himself from a pectoral strain. No doubt the team hopes he can fill the void in the middle with Christian Jones until Trevathan returns.

Next: Chicago Bears 2018 Mock Offseason: The Big Push

K Connor Barth

Another year, another round of questions as to why the Bears still employ the services of Connor Barth. Not only is the kicker useless from beyond 50 yards, he’s also proving less than reliable between the 40-49 range too. He’s missed three such kicks in five total attempts this year, along with one from 50+. He is 7-of-11 for the season. That is an extremely poor accuracy rate. Chicago can’t afford this sort of unreliability in such a meaningful game as this.