Bear Digest

DJ Moore and Jaylon Johnson Try for High Road Amid Packers Comments

Analysis: The Bears seem to realize their current low status in the Packers series as they acted rather civil following a few Green Bay cheap shots.

Gene Chamberlain

Jaylon Johnson says he'd love to get at least one win over the Packers.
Jaylon Johnson says he'd love to get at least one win over the Packers. / Gene Chamberlain Photo: Chicago Bears On SI
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It's still Bears-Packers week even if it's difficult to keep track of who's doing what for the Bears at this point.

This means elevated tension and pressure to end a 10-game losing steak.

Surprisingly, the rhetoric has been coming from the Packers.

Aaron Rodgers' famed "I still own you," aside, the Packers usually try to take a low-keyed approach before the Bears embarrass themselves.

It's an approach best described as leaving the dead bear lie.

Maybe it's that the Bears seem so hapless with their offense and coordinator issues, or just that Xavier McKinney is unfamiliar with the whole process as a newcomer, but the former Giants safety has been trashing Bears receiver DJ Moore this week.

The point of a McKinney discussion with The Athletic's Packers reporter Matt Schneidman was about DJ Moore leaving the field against Arizona during a pass play to go to the bench.

"(Moore) is another one of those guys, same guy, play's still going on and you walk off the field on your offense," McKinney said. "You know, you take note of that.

"I've  been playing football for five years now (NFL) and I've been watching football for longer than that and I don't think I've ever seen a ... . You're supposed to be THE guy and you're just walking off the field. You're walking off the field on a rookie quarterback that you've been praising. So it's like, that's a whole other story."

McKinney also expressed doubt in the story that Moore even had an injury.

If the Bears had any sort of standing in this series at the moment, it would be an easy rallying point.

On Thursday, Moore had already taken note of what McKinney said. He had little to say in response other than to praise McKinney's play from their past encounters.

As for the specific ridicule from McKinney, Moore added: "I mean, if he wanted it to be there it's already there. So, we'll see on Sunday."

Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander also stoked some flames when he said what he tells Green Bay fans who complain about the way the 6-3 Packers have played despite their record: "(I) always say, you know, things could be a lot worse. I could be a Bears fan."

With their offensive coordinator fired, with the offensive line unable to protect Caleb Williams, with Williams unable to get the ball out in time to avoid sacks, with the team in a three-game losing streak and calls for Matt Eberflus' job now being replaced by the assumption he'll be fired at some point, McKinney's comment should really have the impact of a leaf falling from a tree at this time of year in Chicago.

The Bears' 10 straight losses to Green Bay constitutes a tie for the longest streak for either team in this ancient series. The Bears haven't even even covered the spread in any of those 10 games against the Packers.

It's a source of irritation for Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson. He's been in Chicago since 2020. Asked if he found the streak frustrating galling, Johnson said: "Yeah especially when they're 10-0 against us. So I definitely feel the rivalry and at least want to get A win. So looking forward to it."

Johnson, though, was a little more civil about it than the Packer who dissed on his teammate.

He offered up nothing but praise for the Packers, coach Matt LaFleur and quarterback Jordan Love.

"At the end of the day, of course, I see the stats of him throwing interceptions and making some bad decisions, but, I mean, hopefully he does that in our game," Johnson said. "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."

Love has 10 interceptions, twice Caleb Williams' total.

The Packers' attack seems no different with Love than it did with Rodgers and it's because of LaFleur.

"Marrying the run game and the pass game," Johnson said. "Everything really starts up front with them, and they added Josh Jacobs. It's still a challenge for us in the run game.

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"Overall, it's his (LaFleur's) creativity, I would say, making things look the same and then mirroring different routes and different concepts of it. That, and the timing of certain calls. When you pressure, it seems like he knows to run screen passes and things like that. Hes really smart in the timing, I would say."

It's better to offer praise when you're in the position the Bears are in the series.

It's even better not to be in their position.

(Editor's Note: Photo only seems like the last time the Bears beat the Packers)

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.