Cornerback Jaylon Johnson might be the only person in Chicago who wasn’t eager to share his opinion about the Bears’ offense this past week.
After embattled head coach Matt Eberflus fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and replaced him with passing-game coordinator Thomas Brown, Johnson claimed he had no opinion about who called plays for rookie quarterback Caleb Williams.
‘‘I want to win,’’ he said. ‘‘Frankly, I don’t give a damn who is the coach or the OC. If we’re winning games, we’re winning games.’’
Particularly Sunday at Soldier Field. The only player on the Bears’ roster who has won a rivalry game against the Packers is long snapper Patrick Scales, who has been on injured reserve all season. The Bears have lost 10 in a row to the Packers, the longest streak in series history.
‘‘We’re looking to change history,’’ Eberflus said Friday. ‘‘That’s an important thing that we rally around. . . . We understand where the history is, and we have to be better there.’’
Johnson was more blunt.
‘‘We’ve been getting our ass whupped for a long time now,’’ he said. ‘‘I don’t have a win, so it would mean a lot to me.’’
And to the rest of the Bears’ defense.
Packers quarterback Jordan Love had his coming-out party against the Bears in Week 1 of last season. In a 38-20 victory at Soldier Field, Love threw for 245 yards with three touchdowns and a 123.2 passer rating.
He then ended his first full season as a starter with another dominant performance. With the Packers needing to beat the Bears in Week 17 to reach the playoffs, he threw for 316 yards and had a 128.6 passer rating, both career highs.
Love has been vulnerable this season, however, throwing a league-high 10 interceptions and two pick-sixes.
‘‘I see the stats of him throwing interceptions and making some bad decisions,’’ Johnson said. ‘‘I mean, hopefully he does that in our game. But he could come out and have a helluva game against us. Overall, I still feel like he’s a good quarterback who makes some bad mistakes at times.’’
Stellar Packers quarterback play is what has doomed the Bears in the rivalry for two generations. The latest example: Since Eberflus took over in 2022, Packers quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Love have combined for a 117.9 passer rating against the Bears. The Bears have held every other team in the league to an 85.6 rating.
That’s yet another strike against Eberflus — and not just because he’s the defensive play-caller. Chairman George McCaskey long has judged his coaches by how they fare against the Packers.
This season, Love has a new running mate. Two years removed from leading the NFL in rushing with the Raiders, Josh Jacobs signed a four-year, $48 million deal with the Packers as a free agent in March. He provided stability when Love was hurt this season and ranks fifth in the NFL with 84.7 rushing yards per game.
‘‘He looks quicker and faster this year as opposed to last year,’’ Bears defensive coordinator Eric Washington said. ‘‘Looks a lot more dynamic. Breaks a lot of tackles. . . .
‘‘The last couple of years, I think he was finding his way back, finding his footing. Now we’re seeing the All-Pro, Pro Bowl-caliber player that we’ve seen from him previously.’’
That’s a challenging proposition for a Bears defense that two weeks ago against the Cardinals yielded more rushing yards than it had since the 2022 finale.
The secret is how Packers head coach Matt LaFleur makes run and pass plays look so similar.
‘‘It’s [LaFleur’s] creativity . . . making things look the same and then mirroring different routes and different concepts of it,’’ Johnson said. ‘‘That and the timing of certain calls.’’
That’s the value of a good play-caller. Not that the Bears need to be reminded after this past week.