Two days after their impressive overtime win over the Steelers, the Bears return to the practice field Tuesday to begin preparing for Thursday night's game against the Packers in Green Bay.
After blowing a 17-7 lead, the Bears (1-2) beat the Steelers 23-17 on Jordan Howard's 19-yard touchdown run with 8:27 left in overtime. Howard (23 carries for 138 yards) and rookie Tarik Cohen (12-78) combined to rush for 216 yards on 35 attempts.
Bears running back Jordan Howard.
The Packers enter Thursday night's game with a 2-1 record after defeating the Seahawks 17-9, losing to the Falcons 34-23 and beating the Bengals 27-24 in overtime.
Green Bay is led by future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a two-time NFL MVP whose 103.8 career passing rating is the best in NFL history. This season Rodgers has completed 89 of 134 passes for 967 yards with six touchdowns, three interceptions and a 93.1 rating.
The all-time series between the long-time rivals is tied 94-94-6, but the Bears have lost 12 of the last 14. The Packers haven't held an edge in the rivalry since they had an 11-10 series lead entering the 1933 season. The Bears followed by winning five straight and have not trailed since.
The Packers won the last meeting 30-27 last Dec. 18 at Soldier Field. After the Bears rallied from a 27-10 fourth-quarter deficit to forge a 27-27 tie with 1:19 to play, Rodgers heaved a 60-yard bomb to Jordy Nelson in the waning seconds, setting up Mason Crosby's winning 32-yard field goal as time expired. The Packers rushed for 226 yards and three TDs on 23 carries.
Entering Week 4, the Bears rank 21st in offense (8th in rushing and 27th passing) and 12th in defense (8th against the run and 20th versus the pass). The Packers rank 10th in offense (tied for 29th in rushing and 2nd passing) and 8th in defense (21st against the run and 7th versus the pass).
ChicagoBears.com will provide all the latest news from Halas Hall leading up to the game. Coach John Fox, quarterback Mike Glennon, offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers are all scheduled to address the media Tuesday.
