CHICAGO (WLS) — The Bears will host a home playoff game at Soldier Field Saturday for the first time since 2018.
They lost that wild-card game to Philadelphia, but Chicago fans are hoping for a much different result against the hated Green Bay Packers.
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Former Packer and longtime Chicago sports talk host John Jurkovic knows the rivalry well from both sides.
ESPN’s David Kaplan recaps the Bears’ loss to the Lions and looks ahead to the playoff game against the Green Bay Packers.
“The intensity picks up. The fans are gonna be into it, gonna be loud, loser goes home. Hopefully the Bears are the winners,” Jurkovic said. “Both sides, both fan bases, it’s gonna be a game where a lot of people are gonna want to be in attendance. They’re gonna wanna get down here to Chicago and check all the action out.”
The rivalry goes back to the days of Bears founder George Halas, whose statue sits outside Soldier Field.
And while the Bears are limping into the game having lost the last two regular season games, fans are expecting this one to be different.
The Bears also won the division.
“It might be the biggest game in my lifetime. The Bears haven’t been to the playoffs in so many years, and the biggest rival,” Bears fan AJ Reingardt said.
The Packers have lost their last four games, including one to the Bears.
Ticket sales on the resale market are off the charts.
“Unbelievable, unbelievable, from a broker’s standpoint it couldn’t be better. I couldn’t have painted a better picture,” said Steve Buzil, with SitClose tickets. “Gonna get a lot of Green Bay fans, like the last game, there’s a lot of Green Bay fans coming.”
The game and the excitement surrounding it could hardly come at a better time for South Loop bars and restaurants, who expect huge business Saturday during what is normally their slowest time of the year.
“This is Green Bay at Chicago. You can’t ask for better than that. We’re ready for it,” said Carlos Hernandez, with Victory Tap. “When there’s a game, a home game, we get packed out the wazoo. Reservations are crazy, lots of walk-ins.”
The Bears and Packers have played 210 times, more than any other teams in the NFL, with the Packers holding the overall edge in victories.
This will be the third matchup this season, and Saturday’s game will serve as the tie-breaker.
The winner gets to continue in the playoffs.
The last time the Bears and Packers had a playoff game at Soldier Field, the Packers came away with the victory.
The oddsmakers have the Bears as slight favorites Saturday.
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