GREEN BAY — The Green Bay Packers delivered the blowout Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson said he wanted, routing their division rivals 31-7 at Lambeau Field on Sunday to improve to 3-2 in Week 5. Green Bay took complete control after well-warranted criticism for failing to hold leads and never took its foot off the gas in the commanding divisional win.
Quarterback Jordan Love fueled the breakthrough, completing 25 of 31 passes (80.6%) for 367 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions for a 137.5 rating, with his 367 yards the most by a quarterback against the Bears at Lambeau Field. Love connected on 6 completions on throws of 20-plus air yards — nearly matching Chicago's total of 7 entering Week 5 — and hit Christian Watson for both scores as Watson led all receivers with 6 catches on 8 targets for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Matthew Golden added 6 catches on 7 targets for 123 yards and returned 2 punts for 27 yards with a long of 17.
Watson extended his run as a Bear Killer, now with 22 catches for 456 yards, 46 rushing yards and 6 total touchdowns in 7 career games against Chicago, including an impressive second touchdown catch in tight coverage. MarShawn Lloyd scored the first two rushing touchdowns of his NFL career, finishing with 10 rushes for 31 yards and 1 catch for 6 yards, while the defense sealed the win behind safety Xavier McKinney's two interceptions — the first on a throw into triple coverage and the second to halt a second-half comeback attempt — and rookie linebacker Dennis-Sutton's best game as a pro with 3 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 2 quarterback hits, 1 sack and 1 pass defensed, including a closing takedown of quarterback Case Keenum after Micah Parsons told him to be ready to work when he was drafted.
Cornerback Keisean Nixon also starred, staying tight in coverage to force multiple incompletions that prevented touchdowns and forced punts. The lone blemish came from rookie kicker Smack, who battled an extremely windy stadium to miss 2 field goals and an extra point, converting a 35-yard field goal and 2 extra points in the 24-point victory.
Green Bay has now won two straight games and cracked 30 points for the first time this season as the offense finally clicked behind strong offensive line play. The Packers will stay at home in Week 6 to host the 2-3 Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football.