When Bears coach Ben Johnson screamed “Fuck the Packers! Fuck them!” in the locker room after Saturday night’s win, some questioned whether it was an appropriate way for an NFL head coach to comport himself. Johnson made clear today that he doesn’t like the Packers, and he doesn’t care if anyone doesn’t like that.
Johnson said his boss, Bears owner George McCaskey, supports him in disliking the Packers, and Chicago fans support him as well.
“There’s a rivalry that exists between these two teams, something I fully recognize and am a part of. I don’t like that team. George and I have talked and we’re on the same page,” Johnson said.
Johnson said winning in the playoffs means a little more to the Bears when it’s against the Packers.
“The opponent in and of itself, it means a lot to this city, the organization,” Johnson said. “We know how big it is when Chicago plays Green Bay.”
Johnson said before the game that he was motivated by “noise” coming out of Green Bay before the game. But it’s the noise coming from Johnson that has turned the Bears-Packers rivalry up a notch.
The NFL has picked the days, but not the times or the networks, for next weekend’s playoff games. The final decisions will be made after tonight’s Texans-Steelers game.
The obvious question is why?
The most logical answer is that, if the Steelers win, the league will schedule Steelers-Patriots for the 6:30 p.m. ET slot on Sunday and that, if the Texans win, Rams-Bears will be played later.
While that doesn’t explain the decision to not attach a time or a network to the Saturday games, it’s possible that the league wants to have one AFC game at night and the other in the afternoon. It’s also possible that the league realizes the failure to assign times for the Sunday games would become more glaring if the league sets times for the Saturday games.
The league has access to all of the data, with projections as to which games will draw the biggest numbers. And it’s the league’s prerogative to wait until all eight teams are set to decide when the teams will play.
The winner of the Texans-Steelers game should be hoping for the 6:30 p.m. ET slot on Sunday, because every hour (and every minute) counts when operating on a short week. Especially for the Texans, who’d have to travel home and later make the trip to New England.
However it plays out, we’ll likely find out as soon as the Monday night game ends.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford suffered a finger injury during Los Angeles’ 34-31 victory over Carolina on Saturday. But it will not affect his availability for Sunday’s divisional-round matchup with the Bears.
Via Greg Beacham of the Associated Press, McVay told reporters on Monday morning that Stafford has “a little sprain” on his right index finger.
“He’s as tough as it gets, and he’ll be good to go,” McVay said.
Stafford, who is likely on his way to his first MVP award, completed 24-of-42 passes for 304 yards with three touchdowns and one interception in the win. While he started off hot in the contest, Stafford cooled down after suffering the injury on his throwing hand before heating back up in the fourth quarter.
Additionally, McVay said cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon is going to be placed on injured reserve after re-injuring his scapula. Witherspoon was previously on IR for the same injury earlier this season.
McVay also noted that right guard Kevin Dotson has “a good chance” to play on Sunday, which would be a significant boost to the club’s offense. Tight end Terance Ferguson and cornerback Josh Wallace may also return for the divisional round.
Los Angeles’ first injury report of the week is due out on Wednesday.
The games have been set. The dates have been picked.
And that’s all we know, for now, about the divisional round of the playoffs.
The NFL has announced that Bills at Broncos and 49ers at Seahawks will be played on Saturday, January 17. On Sunday, January 18, the Bears will host the Rams and the winner of Monday night’s Texans-Steelers game will travel to New England for a game against the Patriots.
However, the league has not assigned a time to any of the games, or a network.
Between NBC, Fox, CBS, and ESPN, each will have one of the games. The Saturday contests will kick off at 4:30 p.m. ET and 8:00 p.m. ET. On Sunday, the games will start at 3:00 p.m. ET and 6:30 p.m. ET.
The Bills and 49ers will play on six days’ rest, against teams that will be going two weeks between games. (The Seahawks will have had 15 days between the Week 18 game and the division-round contest.)
The rest of the schedule will be set after Monday night’s game, when either the Texans or Steelers will earn a ticket to Gillette Stadium on Sunday.
The Rams will go to Seattle to play the Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game, if the betting odds are to be believed.
With the NFC divisional round matchups set, the Rams are 4.5-point road favorites against the Bears in Chicago, while the Seahawks are 6.5-point home favorites against the 49ers.
The Seahawks are the No. 1 seed and will have home-field advantage in the NFC Championship Game if they beat the 49ers. If the 49ers upset the Seahawks, then San Francisco will go on the road to face the Rams-Bears winner. The 49ers can’t play a home game in the NFC playoffs, but they can play on their home field if they advance to Super Bowl LX.
The Seahawks are +120 favorites to win the NFC Championship, with the Rams next at +150, the Bears at +700 and the 49ers at +800.
