National Football League

Bears, Pack open new chapter in rivalry

Published Jan. 17, 2011 12:00 a.m. ET

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Connections between the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers span generations, decades, centuries and fashion changes. The two teams have been banging heads from the Roaring 20s through the Great Depression, the Space Race and the arrival of the internet and the smart phone.

No one can ever say ”there’s no there there” in the NFL when it comes to the Packers and Bears. They’ve been there together more than any other teams, from their first meeting in 1921 – a 20-0 Bears victory — through two games in the 2010 regular season.

It is impossible not to look at their history as the teams meet again Sunday in the NFC Championship Game at Soldier Field.

A mother lode of history can be mined from the 181 games they’ve played.

But it is the present that counts, with a trip to Super Bowl XLV at stake.

In the present tense, the key combatants for Sunday made contact through the social media of the 21st Century.

The Bears’ Jay Cutler reached out to Packers counterpart Aaron Rodgers after Rodgers’ brilliant performance in Saturday night’s 48-21 victory at Atlanta in the divisional round.

Rodgers might have been the best player of the weekend, with 366 passing yards, three touchdowns and a passer rating of 136.8 at the Georgia Dome.

Cutler congratulated Rodgers Saturday night, then took care of his end of the deal on Sunday with an efficient performance in a 35-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field.

“I texted him and told him, ‘Good game,’” Cutler said of his message to Rodgers. ‘‘I’ll probably have a few text messages from him, so we’ll have friendly banter.

“Impressive win they had. What they did on the road to an Atlanta team is hard to do. So we’ve got our hands full.”

The road to the Super Bowl goes through the NFC North in this year’s NFC playoffs. The Bears won the North with an 11-5 record while the Packers got in as a wild card at 10-6.

The early betting line favors the Packers by three points. That seems fair, even with the Bears at home, and with a split of the season series. Both teams won at home.

The Packers have more skill and better depth at wide receiver, and their defense has caused havoc in beating the Eagles and Falcons.

Clay Matthews has three sacks. In the secondary, Tramon Williams has three interceptions, and Charles Woodson has been disruptive blitzing and in coverage.

Williams made the clinching end-zone interception against the Eagles, and his interception return for a touchdown on the last play of the first half Saturday night was the game-changing moment. It extended the Packers’ lead to 28-14.

But the Bears shouldn’t feel over-matched, no matter what the betting line says.

Until giving up two touchdowns in last three minutes Sunday, they’d put the clamps on a Seahawks offense that scored 41 points in a wild-card win over the Saints.

Seattle’s first eight possessions ended in punts. On possession No. 9, they gained 18 yards on seven plays and kicked a field goal. Through three quarters, Seattle had five first downs.

It’s hard to imagine the Bears shutting down the Packers that way.

“We know what they are,” said Brian Urlacher, whose back to being a dominating force at middle linebacker after missing most of last season with an injured right wrist.

“They have a great quarterback, great defense. Big challenge. Big history game. Only second time this has happened, someone on the field told me.”

Someone’s history is accurate. Their only playoff game was in 1941 – a 33-14 Bears victory in the Western Division playoff. Both teams were 10-1 in the regular season and had split the season series.

The Bears went on to beat the Giants, 37-9, to win the NFL championship.

The Bears have been out of the playoffs the last three years since the 2006 team lost to the Colts in the Super Bowl.

“It’s been a long way back,” Urlacher said. “We’ve had some bad years there.

“We’re back playing together, and hopefully peaking at the right time.”

Mike O’Hara is a frequent contributor for FOX Sports Detroit.

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