Packers look to finish regular season by beating the Bears for 12th straight time

Chicago (4-12) at Green Bay (11-5)

Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, Fox

BetMGM NFL Odds: Packers by 10.

Against the spread: Bears 7-7-2; Packers 9-7.

Series record: Packers lead 108-95-6.

Last meeting: Packers won 20-19 in Chicago on Nov. 17, 2024.

Last week: Bears lost 6-3 at home to Seattle Seahawks on Dec. 26. Packers lost 27-25 at Minnesota on Sunday.

Bears offense: overall (32), rush (25), pass (29), scoring (29).

Packers offense: overall (7), rush (5), pass (12), scoring (8).

Bears defense: overall (25), rush (27), pass (18), scoring (12).

Packers defense: overall (8), rush (6), pass (17), scoring (6).

Turnover differential: Bears plus-8, Packers plus-12.

Bears player to watch

QB Caleb Williams. The Bears are opting to give the No. 1 overall draft pick one more start, believing the benefits outweigh the injury risks. Williams has taken a franchise-record 67 sacks, which leads the NFL and is the fourth-highest total in league history. David Carr has the highest single-season total with 76 as a rookie with Houston in 2002. Williams has started every game and thrown for 3,393 yards — fifth on Chicago’s single-season list — with 19 touchdowns and six interceptions. His league rookie-record streak of passes without an INT ended at 353 when he got picked off by Riq Woolen near the end of last week’s game.

Packers player to watch

LB Edgerrin Cooper, a second-round pick from Texas A&M, continued his rookie season by getting his heaviest workload yet and responding with four tackles for loss against the Vikings. This regular-season finale gives Cooper a chance to build on his momentum as he tunes up for his first playoff game.

Key matchup

Bears running game vs. Packers run defense. The Packers allowed a season-high 179 yards rushing in their victory over the Bears at Soldier Field. D’Andre Swift rushed for 71 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries and Williams ran for 70 yards on nine attempts that day. The Bears have struggled ever since and now have a banged-up offensive line, but Chicago’s rushing success in that previous matchup gives the Packers reason for concern.

Key injuries

Bears LG Teven Jenkins (calf), DB Elijah Hicks (ankle/foot) and RB Travis Homer (hamstring) have been ruled out. … Packers CB Jaire Alexander (knee) will miss a seventh straight game and isn’t expected to return for the playoffs. … The Packers also ruled out LB Quay Walker (ankle), S Zayne Anderson (concussion), OT Andre Dillard (concussion) and S Evan Williams (quadriceps). … Packers WR Christian Watson (knee) and DL Brenton Cox Jr. (foot) are questionable.

Series notes

Green Bay has won its past 11 matchups with the Bears, which represents the longest winning streak by either team in the history of the NFL’s most-played rivalry. This is also the longest active winning streak by any NFL team against a specific opponent. The Packers’ only longer winning streak over any opponent in history came from 1937-46, when they beat the Chicago Cardinals 15 straight times. … Chicago nearly ended the streak earlier this season. The Packers escaped with a 20-19 victory only after Karl Brooks blocked Cairo Santos’ 46-yard field goal on the game’s final play. Jordan Love’s 1-yard touchdown run put the Packers ahead for good with 2:59 left. … The Bears have scored over 20 points in just two of their past 11 meetings with the Packers. … During its 11-game winning streak over the Bears, Green Bay has a plus-15 turnover margin with 19 takeaways and four giveaways. … The Packers have outscored Chicago 450-244 in their past 16 home games against the Bears.

Stats and stuff

Chicago has lost 10 straight — its second double-digit skid in three seasons under GM Ryan Poles. The Bears dropped the final 10 games in 2022 as part of a franchise-worst 14-game streak. They have never lost more than 10 in a row in one season. … The Bears’ 67 sacks allowed surpassed their previous mark of 66 in 2004, when they used four quarterbacks. … Chicago’s defense did its part last week, allowing a season-low six in points and its second-lowest total in yards (265). … Rome Odunze’s 716 yards receiving are the fourth most by a Bears rookie. … Bears P Tory Taylor’s 48.1-yard gross punting average is the highest in franchise history, and his 32 punts downed inside the 20 are a Bears record. … Santos has made seven field goals of 50 yards or more, tying his franchise record from last season. … Green Bay is currently slotted as the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs, which would have the Packers visiting the NFC East champion Philadelphia Eagles in the wild-card round. The Packers can move up to the No. 6 seed if they beat the Bears and the Washington Commanders lose at Dallas. … The start of the Packers’ 11-game winning streak over Chicago coincides with Matt LaFleur’s arrival as Green Bay’s coach. The only other coaches ever to be undefeated against a particular team through at least 10 games (including the playoffs) are Joe Gibbs (12-0 vs. Detroit), George Allen (11-0-1 vs. Atlanta), Blanton Collier (11-0 vs. Washington) and Curly Lambeau (10-0 vs. Cleveland Tigers, 9-0-1 vs. Milwaukee Badgers). … The Packers have trailed at halftime in all their NFC North games, and they have been outscored 85-27 in the first half of their divisional games. They’ve outscored all other opponents 192-89 in the first half. … The Packers are the only NFL team with four players who have at least 25 receptions, 600 yards receiving and multiple touchdown catches (Romeo Doubs, Tucker Kraft, Jayden Reed and Watson). … Packers S Xavier McKinney has seven interceptions to rank second in the NFL, two behind Detroit’s Kerby Joseph. … Packers RB Josh Jacobs has rushed for 1,285 yards to rank fifth in the NFL. … Jacobs has run for a touchdown in seven straight games, matching the longest such streak in franchise history. Paul Hornung had a touchdown run in seven straight games in 1960. … Packers K Brandon McManus is 17 of 18 on field-goal attempts. … Packers QB Jordan Love has thrown nine TD passes and no interceptions over his past six games. The most recent player to intercept Love was Chicago’s Terell Smith on Nov. 17.

Fantasy tip

While both coaches have said they will play their starters Sunday, there’s no telling how long the main guys will remain in the game as the Packers prepare for the playoffs and the Bears gear up for the offseason. But if the Packers have an early drive, don’t be surprised if they hand the ball to Jacobs near the goal line to give him a chance to break Hornung’s record.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.