The Bears will look for their third straight victory and to improve to 4-1 Sunday when they visit the rival Packers at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.
Quarterback Tyson Bagent is slated to start his second straight game in place of the Injured Caleb Williams, who returned to practice Friday on a limited basis for the first time since he injured his hamstring late in a Week 2 game against the Vikings.
The Bears are the first NFL team to have three different quarterbacks lead them to wins in the first four weeks of a season since the 1997 Jaguars: Williams over the Panthers, Case Keenum over the Eagles and Bagent over the Jets.
The Bears are seeking their third consecutive victory over the Packers for the first time since 2005-06 and are 3-1 in their last four games versus Green Bay —including last season's scintillating 31-27 wild card win.
The Packers are 2-2, losing to the Vikings 39-22 in Minnesota, beating the Jets 20-17 on the road, falling at home to the Falcons 35-14 and defeating the Buccaneers 17-14 in Tampa.
When the Bears have the ball
Bagent will look to build on his performance in last Sunday's 23-12 win over the Jets. Making his first start since 2023, he completed 25 of 34 passes for 268 yards and directed an offense that generated a franchise-record 34 first downs, amassed 492 total yards and possessed the ball for 42:45.
Coach Ben Johnson was pleased with how crisply Bagent operated the offense, but would like to see him take better advantage of big-play opportunities down the field. But that won't be easy against the Packers defense.
"If it's there, we want to be able to take it and convert on it," said offensive coordinator Press Taylor. "But at the same time, if we call shots and people are deep down the field and we have checkdowns underneath, we'll continue to put the ball in play and continue to stay on schedule like we've done and utilize the entire playbook or the entire game plan for that week.
"In terms of the Packers, they do a great job of keeping the ball in front. I think the two safeties and the nickel do as good of a job as anybody we've seen, at least in terms of disguising coverage, rotating coverage, being versatile. You'll see all those guys play in the box, play deep in the post, play the half. It's a really good unit from that standpoint. Those three really play together really well and complement each other really well."
The Bears entered Week 5 leading the NFL in total yards (429.0), rushing yards (196.3) and time of possession (36:35) per game. But they will face the Packers without leading rusher Kyle Monangai, who is sidelined with a toe injury.
The running game in Green Bay will be led by D'Andre Swift, who ranks eighth in the NFL in rushing with 311 yards and three touchdowns on 69 attempts, and Roschon Johnson, whose 16 yards on four attempts this season all came in the fourth quarter last Sunday versus the Jets.
The Bears will look for their top pass catchers to pick up Sunday where they left off against the Jets. In that game, receiver Rome Odunze set season highs with six receptions and 94 yards, receiver Luther Burden III matched a season high with 63 yards and tight end Colston Loveland's six catches for 57 yards more than doubled his output in both categories from the first three games combined.
Bears left guard Joe Thuney (pectoral), right guard Jonah Jackson (ankle) and right tackle Darnell Wright (ankle) all were full participants in practice Friday and not given injury designations after sitting out Wednesday and being limited Thursday.
Injuries are impacting the Packers defense. Star outside linebacker Micah Parsons remains on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list as he continues to recover from a torn ACL he sustained last Dec. 14, and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper is out for the season after tearing his ACL last Sunday against the Buccaneers.
Key matchup: Bears receiver Kalif Raymond vs. Packers nickel back Javon Bullard
Raymond gives the Bears a lightning quick playmaker who has excelled in the slot, especially on third downs. At times he will likely be matched up against Bullard, a 2024 second-round pick who has recorded 10 tackles and two pass breakups this season.
When the Packers have the ball
The Bears will head to Green Bay having limited their last three opponents to 28 points, the fewest in a three-game span since they also allowed 28 in 2012. One key factor has been a stingy third-down defense that has held the Vikings (3 of 13), Eagles (2 of 9) and Jets (0 of 7) to a combined 17.2% success rate. For the season, the Bears rank second in the NFL in third-down defense at 23.7%.
On Sunday, they will battle Jordan Love, whose 113.2 career passer rating against the Bears is the best by any NFL quarterback with at least 150 pass attempts. In addition, Love's 13 TD passes versus the Bears are his most against any team.
"I see a guy that, if he's got a clean pocket and he can throw the ball on rhythm and timing, he's as good as there is in the league," said defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. "He's an outstanding quarterback, and he's a tough challenge for us."
Love is one of four NFL quarterbacks to throw at least two TD passes in each of the first four games this year. He has been sacked only once in the last two contests after taking seven sacks the first two weeks of the season.
Love's top targets are receivers Christian Watson and Matthew Golden. Watson is ninth in the league with 331 yards and is one of four NFL receivers with at least 330 yards and three TDs. Golden is 12th in the league with 274 yards.
With running back Josh Jacobs on the Commissioner's Exempt list since Aug. 30, the Packers rank last in the NFL in rushing, averaging 58.0 yards per game. Green Bay has rushed for 232 yards in four contests this season, the exact total the Bears amassed last Sunday against the Jets.
Key matchup: Bears defensive end Montez Sweat vs. Packers right tackle Anthony Belton
Generating pressure on Love will be paramount for Sweat and the Bears to limit Green Bay's explosive plays to their speedy receivers. With right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele (previously known as Zach Tom) out for the season with a knee injury, Sweat will line up opposite Belton, a 2025 second-round pick.
