Can Jordan Love prove himself in a historic rivalry matchup, or will the Chicago Bears conquer the Green Bay Packers again this season?
The last time the Green Bay Packers faced the Chicago Bears in the playoffs was back in the 2010 NFC Championship Game on January 23, 2011.
The Packers won that game, 24-14 at Soldier Field and advanced to Super Bowl XLV. There, Aaron Rodgers, Jordy Nelson, Clay Matthews, Charles Woodson and co. raised the the Lombardi Trophy after beating the Pittsburgh Steelers, 31-15.
And that's the last time the Packers won the Super Bowl. It's the last time they played in one as well, despite getting to the NFC Championship multiple times from 2011 to 2020.
Of course, it's worth noting that Rodgers was the quarterback for all those runs to the NFC Championship. The furthest the Pack have gotten with Jordan Love at quarterback is the divisional round, so this iteration of the team has a ton to prove.
Can Love be an elite quarterback? Elite quarterbacks win in the playoffs, and Love's record as a starter in the playoffs is 1-2.
Can Green Bay's defense make plays without Micah Parsons on the field? Defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley is being considered for head coaching jobs, but he still has unfinished business in green and gold.
“Yeah, I love this group. I love being part of the Green Bay Packers,” Hafley said earlier this week. “I never take that for granted every day when I drive in and get to see Lambeau Field — honestly."
“We are not going to be done, so I’ll see you guys next week,” he also said.
From Hafley to his boss. Can head coach Matt LaFleur get this team over the hump? Heck, can he get them to play 60 minutes of disciplined football?
We know Chicago head coach Ben Johnson has boasted about beating LaFleur twice a year in the past when he was the offensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions. They're 1-1 against each other as head coaches, so this is the rubber match.
You can call it a grudge match. You can call it a rubber match. You can call it the threequel.
Whatever you call it, it's Packers vs. Bears in the NFL playoffs and that's a huge deal.
We here at PackersRoundtable are excited to watch this game with you. We're going to use this space as a live game thread for reactions, memes, video clips and anything else pertaining to the game.
Game Time: 7:00 PM Lambeau Time
TV Channel: Prime Video
Betting Odds: Packers -1.5
Notable Pre-Game Links:
Discuss the the game in the comments below and Go Pack Go!
Category: General Sports