Bears’ Montez Sweat Turns Up Heat on Rivalry: ‘Blame’ Packers

Montez Sweat, Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears have not beaten the Green Bay Packers since the 2018 season.

They are 0-10 since then, and are on their second head coach, fourth offensive coordinator, and fifth defensive coordinator in that span, while the Packers are on their third set of coordinators, albeit under the same head coach.

Montez Sweat on Bears-Packers Rivalry: ‘It’s Up’

Bears’ Montez Sweat Places ‘Blame’ on Packers’ Preston Smith, Keisean Nixon

The more things have stayed the same at the top for the Packers, the more they have for the Bears in their head-to-head matchups against their most hated rival. Bears star edge rusher Montez Sweat is ready to change all of that and he’s blaming a pair of Packers players for his increased disdain.

“I done developed a real rivalry with Green Bay blame @PrestonSmith91 & @keiseannixon it’s up,” Sweat posted on X, formerly Twitter, on March 15.

The Bears spent much of the 2023 offseason building themselves up to face the Packers in the season opener only to fall flat, losing 38-20. They kept it closer in the season finale but still fell 17-9, allowing the Packers to make the playoffs. Smith had a fitting reaction, saying “see you on the other side”, complete with a shrugging emoji.

If the Bears are going to buck the trend, Sweat will undoubtedly have to play a significant part.

Bears Need More Juice From Their Pass Rush Beyond Montez Sweat in 2024

Packers quarterback Jordan Love absorbed 30 sacks last season, tied for the 15th most in the NFL.

However, the Bears could only bring him down twice in 59 combined dropbacks. And they still finished the season with the second-fewest sacks in the NFL, despite trading for Sweat and spending over $30 million to revamp their pass rush last offseason.

Ngakoue went down in Week 14 with a broken ankle that cut his season short. He still finished the season third on the team in sacks. He was 0.5 sacks behind defensive tackle Justin Jones.

Jones joined the Arizona Cardinals in free agency, potentially leaving a big void up front.

The Bears still have nose tackle Andrew Billings, and they could explore their remaining options in the free agency and the draft. But the Bears also have in-house candidates they could turn to, and one is letting it be known he’s coming for the big year some have already predicted.

Bears’ Gervon Dexter Sr. Shares Offseason Workout Hype Video

Jones was among those who expressed great confidence in 2023 second-round pick Gervon Dexter Sr.’s ceiling.

“I feel like G, I feel like he’s gonna be really, really, really good player one day. And I mean like really good,” Jones told Clocker Sports in October. “I feel like, career-wise I feel like he’s gonna have a really really good career, and I feel like he’s taking those strides to be an elite player at some point.”

Jones recorded 2.5 sacks from Weeks 14 through 17 and, in a new offseason workout video, Dexter is working to be even more productive next season.

“You can’t Deny this,” Dexter captioned the video, shared in a post on X on March 14.

The 6-foot-6 defensive lineman gave himself an honest assessment after the season.

“It feels good getting going, getting that confidence rolling, and play playing fast,” Dexter told Clocker Sports in January. “I want to dominate a little more in the run game and have my presence there a little more, so that’s one thing I’m gonna work on.”

He appears to be taking steps towards doing just that.