CHICAGO (670 The Score) -- If there has been a colder moment this season than Aaron Rodgers sealing another win at Soldier Field by yelling "I still own you!" to the fans, I can't think of it. As it turns out, Rodgers does still, in fact, own the Bears. This time it just happened to manifest itself in the form of the Packers' 24-14 win Sunday afternoon. The Bears (3-3) are back at .500, and somewhere the McCaskeys are more mad than usual -- or so the legend goes. Let's hand out some grades.
Offense: D+
The good news is that Khalil Herbert looks like A Guy. In his first NFL start, Herbert carried 19 times for 97 yards and a touchdown. There were moments during the game when Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields made some flashy plays, and connecting with Allen Robinson on a 20-yard out midway through the first quarter – on third down, no less – was one of his more impressive throws of the day. Fields also showed impressive command of the offense during the 10-play, 80-yard drive that cut the Bears' deficit to 17-14 midway through the fourth quarter.
Still, it was an uneven day at best. It's hard to blame Fields for his deep-ball interception, which was chaotic as hell and confused literally everyone at Soldier Field after it appeared the Packers jumped offsides but weren't called for a penalty. Fields lucked out of a second interception later in the half, when another deep ball in the Packers' end zone was (probably incorrectly) ruled an incompletion. Some of his usual issues showed up too. He took a delay-of-game penalty out of a timeout, fumbled the ball on a scramble and missed a few open reads.
Unsurprisingly, his receivers had quiet days too – Robinson (whose lack of connection with Fields is as obvious as it is confusing) led the Bears with four catches for 53 yards. Darnell Mooney had fewer receiving yards (45) than Cole Kmet (49), so it was that kind of day for him. Side note: It was also a tough day for the officials.
Defense: C-
All things considered, the Bears' defense played fine. There were far worse defensive performances across the league Sunday than what the Bears put in. Holding Rodgers and the Packers offense to 24 points (169 net passing yards, 154 rushing yards) should be more than enough to, in theory, keep the Bears in the game. But Rodgers is inevitable, and he came up with big plays when the Packers needed them. Khallil Mack and Robert Quinn (one third-down sack each) both continued to play like elite pass rushers, so the Bears have to be happy there. Jaylon Johnson held Davante Adams to 48 receiving yards until midway through the fourth quarter, and an Eddie Jackson missed tackle is going to make Johnson's day look worse than it was.
The takeaways just weren't there for the Bears on Sunday though, and they didn't do a good job of stopping the run. Packers running backs Aaron Jones (76 yards) and A.J. Dillion (59 yards) pounded the Bears in the red zone. The Packers' 154 rushing yards marked the Bears run defense's second-worst performance of the season. And speaking of bad performances, here's something worth mentioning: It was a tough day for the officials.
Special teams: B+
Pat O'Donnell had his typically good day, so shout out to Pat. The best Bears special teams performance Sunday, however, was punt returner Jakeem Grant, who only returned two punts for 11 yards -- but they were two *fearless* returns for 11 *fearless* yards. They were impressive returns. Less impressive? The officiating crew, which had a tough day.
Cam Ellis is a writer for 670 The Score and Audacy Sports. Follow him on Twitter @KingsleyEllis.
