The Chicago Bears are going to the NFL playoffs in their first season with new head coach Ben Johnson, and even though they fell to the Detroit Lions on Sunday, January 4, with a 19-16 final score, it didn’t impact their seeding of playoff picture. The Bears secured the second seed in the NFC and will go up against the Green Bay Packers at home on Saturday, January 10.
Now, both the Bears and Packers are making roster moves, and Green Bay just made a big one. Packers coach Matt LaFleur knows that Johnson and the Bears mean business, plus they’re dealing with an often injured quarterback Jordan Love, so Green Bay isn’t taking any chances.
The Bears’ wild-card playoff appearance will mark Chicago’s first time in the postseason since 2020. The game will take place on Saturday, January 10 at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
Green Bay Packers Make Change Before Chicago Bears Playoff Game
The Green Bay Packers have made a change to their quarterback depth chart. On Tuesday, January 6, the team released last week’s starting signal-caller, Clayton Tune, and promoted Desmond Ridder from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.
Also, Green Bay signed two former players to their practice squad: receiver Julian Hicks and tight end Messian Swinson. They also inked receiver Kisean Johnson to the practice squad.
The biggest change here, of course, is the addition of Ridder to the Packers’ 53-man roster. What’s wild is that the team just signed Ridder to their practice squad last week.
LaFleur talked him up on Friday, January 2, telling reporters that Ridder is “a guy that we’ve seen up close and personal.”
“We played against him when he was in Atlanta and watching what he did in that game, he led them to a win,” LaFleur added. “So, he’s got experience in the system. I think he’s put in the time. Sean’s (Mannion, quarterbacks coach) been working with him, too. Yeah, he’ll be ready to go if need be.”
Mannion also talked about working with Ridder and the team’s quarterback roster and getting them ready for the postseason, stating, “It’s trying to really prioritize, ‘Hey, what are the things we have to get covered’ in sequence.”
He added, “How do we get him in and out of the huddle? How do we get him to understand our protection scheme? How do we get him to understand our formations? So, you try to stick to the same teaching progression. It’s just really, really accelerated.”
Chicago Bears and the Playoff Run
The Chicago Bears’ loss to the Lions on January 4 didn’t hurt their playoff seeding at all, according to NFL research, and they still earned the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs because the Philadelphia Eagles lost to the Washington Commanders in their game. So, the Bears will host the Packers in the wild-card round.
If the Bears take down the Packers, they’ll appear in the divisional round, which starts on January 17. There, the NFL will host two games, one at 4:30 p.m. and the other at 8:15 p.m. On January 18, games will take place at 3 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., all in Eastern time.
Packers Throw Bears a Quarterback Curveball Before Playoffs