GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Bears have been brutal to begin games this season, and that trend followed them all the way to the end.
They opened Sunday against the Packers with a three-and-out and a punt, and that was the 11th time in 17 games they started that way. In 17 opening drives, the Bears managed just two field goals, one against the Texans in Week 2 and one against the Packers in Week 11, and allowed their opponent to score first 15 of 17 times.
This one was particularly ugly. Starting at their own 30, the Bears’ first play was a high snap from center Coleman Shelton that went through quarterback Caleb Williams’ hands, and Williams was sacked for a seven-yard loss. It was his league-high 68th sack of the season.
Williams compounded it with a pass to tight end Cole Kmet for minus-four yards on second down and managed just a two-yard completion to running back Roschon Johnson on third. The Bears punted on fourth-and-19 from their own 21-yard line.
They did manage to score first, however, with a trick play on special teams. The Bears put wide receiver DJ Moore in at punt returner as a decoy, and cornerback Josh Blackwell returned the punt 94 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead.
The only other time this season the Bears started with a lead was when they went up 7-0 against the Vikings in Week 12, only for Minnesota to tie the game one minute later.