Packers v Bears - again. When the Packers open the game with a 7 play 83 yard touchdown drive of such beautiful efficiency and execution, the undefeated perfection adorning their season seems completely justified. Even when the Bears Tillman single handedly forces two lost fumbles from rookie receiver James Jones, the failure of the Bears offense to turn them into points on the board appears to legitimize the both the inept Chicago offense and the vastly improved Green Bay defense. The Packers proceed to roll out 341 moving the ball forward yards by halftime, but take only a 10 point lead into the locker room.Brian Urlacher will later say that yardage doesn’t win football games, points do. Something changes during the mid-game break because the Packers come out like they spend the time gloating over their individual stats, while the Bears find the willpower to start playing like a team that reached the Super Bowl only eight months ago. When, with four and a half minutes left in the Third Quarter, Urlacher intercepts a bonehead Brett Favre decision at the Packers 19, the tide of the game is completely turned. The Green and Gold play the rest of night with the dazed realization they reached the moment when they could seize control of their division and they flinched. GB Game 5 Stats.
So where is the silver lining? It may emerge from a new grounding in reality for this very young team and their extremely aged player coach. If the sting of having given away a victory to the kids next door drives complacency out of the upcoming efforts, that will be helpful. If it keeps the phrase, DON’T BE STUPID, in between Favre and his arm, a lot of good things are still possible for this now 4-1 football team.
