Game Preview: Bears at Packers | Bears, etc. Podcast

·45 min·4 clips

Jeff Joniak opens with a rapid-fire Bears touchdown call and declares it's Packer Week, setting up a crucial NFC North showdown.

The episode opens with a montage of Bears highlights and an introduction to Packer Week, emphasizing the rivalry's intensity. Hosts Jeff Joniak and Tom Thayer set the context for the game, noting it's the first of two meetings in three weeks with playoff implications. They discuss the national attention on the Bears and the NFL's schedule adjustments. Tom Thayer provides analysis on quarterback protections, using examples from Jim McMahon's era to explain how Caleb Williams must handle Micah Parsons. A segment features Caleb Williams discussing his appreciation for the rivalry's history, the team's confidence built through consistency, and his focus on game management and routine plays. The hosts then introduce special guest Tom Clements, a retired NFL coach and former Notre Dame quarterback. Clements shares his coaching philosophy, emphasizing preparation and decision-making, and recounts his experiences coaching Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. He also offers impressions of current quarterbacks Jordan Love and Caleb Williams. The conversation touches on Clements' interview for the Bears' head coaching job in 2013 and his Canadian Football League career. Later, the hosts reflect on historical crowd noise rules and how they affected games in the 1980s. They praise the Bears' coaching staff for developing players beyond expectations, highlighting improvements in strength and technique. The episode concludes with a breakdown of the Bears' path to victory against the Packers, focusing on offensive timing and the running game's sustainability.

As heard by us

A Bears-Packers preview finds its best value in Tom Clements' clear-eyed lesson on quarterback learning and live-game speed.

Bears Etc. frames Bears-Packers week with a broader late-season lens, setting the Lambeau trip against the final five weeks as national attention around Chicago keeps rising.

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Why you'd press play

You get Packer Week stakes, Lambeau tension, and a quarterback lesson from Tom Clements.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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