Pick the top play from the Packers’ Week 1 win over the Bears

1,235 days, 1,778,400 minutes. How do you measure (nearly) three and a half years? The Season of Love began in earnest against the Chicago Bears on Sunday and much to the delight of Packers fans across the globe, this part of the story played out much like the previous chapters: with a soul-crushing drubbing of a hopeful Chicago squad. At points, Love and the Packers looked like an offense wading into uncharted waters for the first time, because, well, they are. Each step brought more confidence, and with some help from a twitched-up day from the defense, the Packers were swimming comfortably in the deep end by the 4th quarter, looking like they just might belong.

Love’s reign as the starter kicked off with a bang, as the Packers drove 40 yards in 11 plays to go up 7-0 on a Romeo Doubs TD. Things stalled from there, with a field goal battle breaking out (thanks to a few scrums and tipped screen passes) to slim the Packers’ lead to 10-6 at the half. The gap between Matt Lafleur and Luke Getsy, and by extension, Love and Justin Fields was obvious in the second half, as the Packers scored touchdowns on three of their first four drives to put Chicago away. Aaron Jones was an efficiency god once again, picking up where he had left off the past 6 seasons. An abysmal Justin Fields interception was the dagger, as Quay Walker did his best Beast Mode impression to welcome Roschon Johnson to the NFL. 38-20. Bears still suck. Let’s dive into this week’s Top Plays.

Doubs Snags Love’s First TD as a Starter

After an opening drive on which Justin Fields was stopped well short of the line on 4th down, the Packers took over in prime field position at the Chicago 40-yard line. Love’s first flash was a 3rd and 13 slant to Romeo Doubs, who took advantage of soft Jaylon Johnson coverage for the first down. Aaron Jones took over from there, moving the offense down to the 8 where Love had yet another impressive throw, hitting Doubs in the back of the end zone with an off-platform flick of the wrist.

Aaron Jones Nearly Houses a Screen

After a tight first half, Love and the offense started to settle in at the top of the third quarter. Much like the responses to their slow starts in camp and preseason, the Packers flipped a switch. A focus on getting Aaron Jones more involved drove the team to midfield, where the biggest chunk play of the game took place. Love sold the play-action boot perfectly and tossed a one-legged throwback screen to his electric back, who had three linemen to escort him and a few hesitant Bears defenders to scamper past. 51 yards later, the Packers were in business. After AJ Dillon was tripped up twice, Jones punched it in on third and goal to put the Packers up 17-6.

Jordan Love Avoids a Bobbled Snap Disaster

Somehow, the Aaron Jones screen was not Jordan Love’s only fadeaway toss of the day. Another touchdown drive and a response from the Bears made the contest 24-14 at the end of the third quarter. The Packers needed a momentum shift, and rookie tight end Luke Musgrave delivered. After a missed opportunity early on which Matt LaFleur stressed the need for him to stay vertical in his route, Musgrave made the most of his second chance. Jordan Love did not panic after a botched snap, instead rolling slightly right to buy time and initiating the “screw it, Luke’s down there somewhere” offense. Musgrave’s penchant for stumbling caught up to him here, but Love’s gorgeous face to Romeo Doubs the next play stuck the dagger into Bears fans everywhere.

Quay Walker’s Pick Six Dagger

Fans and teammates barely had time to celebrate Romeo Doubs’ first two-touchdown game before Justin Fields’ next colossal mistake. On 3rd and 11 in their own territory, Fields locked his eyes on Darnell Mooney the entire play but failed to see Quay Walker lurking. Walker was blessed with one of the easiest interceptions you’ll ever see, and that’s where the fun began. The second-year linebacker did not immediately run outside, instead opting to take it back toward the middle of the field to deliver punishment to Roschon Johnson. After bouncing off Johnson like a pinball, Walker had a free path to the end zone for the Packers’ final score of the game.

That’s it for this week’s top plays! Be sure to vote for your favorite play and sound off in the comments below. We’ll be back next week after the Packers take on the 1-0 Falcons in Atlanta. Keep it locked here and @acmepackingco on Twitter for the latest on this week’s game.