Thursday, May 17th, 2012
The Green Bay Packers will travel to face divisional rival the Chicago Bears in the NFC championship game in an NFL pro football playoff game on Sunday.
Kick off time from Chicago is scheduled for 3PM Eastern Time with national television coverage provided by FOX.
The betting odds opened up with the road club Green Bay Packers favored by -3 points with an over under of 43 ½ points.
The early money from the NFL betting public has come on the road team as the Green Bay Packers have been bet up to a -3 ½ point favorite. The total has moved up to 44 points.
Green Bay Packers money line gamblers will lay -175 odds with the home underdog Chicago Bears bringing back +165 odds to win straight up without the aid of taking the points.
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It will be the third meeting this season between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears this season. The teams split 1-1 with each team winning at home.
Their first match up occurred early in the season on September 27th where the Chicago Bears earned a 20-17 Monday night home victory against the Green Bay Packers as a +3 point underdog. The game landed under the closing total of 45 ½ points.
The game was knotted up at 17 a piece and the Bears drove for the winning score as Green Bay committed a huge turnover late that cost them victory.
The Packers produced 379 yards on the Bears defense and held a 36-24 time of possession advantage.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed 34 of 45 passes for 316 yards with a touchdown and pick. Rodgers did run it twice for 20 yards and a score.
The running back position did not produce much as John Kuhn and Brandon Jackson combined for 13 rushing attempts for 43 yards.
Donald Driver had 9 catches for 61 yards. The Packers tight end at the time was Jermichael Finley and he led the club with 9 catches for 115 yards. Finley has since been lost for the season due to injury.
The Chicago offense produced only 276 yards in their win. The team earned a touchdown from special teams as Devin Hester returned a punt 62 yards for a touchdown.
Quarterback Jay Cutler completed 16 of 27 passes for 221 yards with a touchdown and pick. Cutler had three runs for 37 yards.
Running back Matt Forte had 11 rushes for 29 yards.
Johnny Knox led the club with 4 catches for 94 yards. Tight end Greg Olsen contributed with 5 pass receptions for 64 yards and a score.
The rematch occurred in week 17 with the Packer needing a win to qualify as a #6 seed in the playoffs. A loss would have eliminated Green Bay and qualify the New York Giants in the playoffs.
The Packers pulled out a 10-3 home victory against the Chicago Bears as an -11 point favorite. The game played well under the closing total of 43 ½ points.
It is worth noting the Bears had nothing to play for in week 17 but played their starters to try and eliminate a division rival in the playoffs.
Green Bay on offense had just 284 yards.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed 19 of 28 passes for 229 yards with a touchdown and pick. Rodgers had 7 runs for 21 yards.
James Starks had 5 rushes for 20 yards. Brandon Jackson had 19 rushing yards on 7 runs.
Greg Jennings led the team with 4 pass receptions for 97 yards. Donald Driver contributed with 5 catches for 41 yards.
In this defensive battle the Bears too had trouble generating offense with only 227 yards of offense.
Quarterback Jay Cutler completed 21 of 39 passes for 168 yards with no touchdowns and two picks.
On the ground the Bears found some success as Matt Forte rushed it 15 times for 91 yards. Forte was busy in the passing game as he had 60 receiving yards on 8 pass receptions.
Wide out Rashied Davis led the club with 7 catches for 63 yards. Tight end Greg Olson caught 5 passes for 29 yards.
Green Bay plays in the NFC championship with an overall record of 12-6 on the season. The club averages 25 points and 360 yards per game.
The club plays on the road for the 11th time this season where they stand at 5-5 this season.
The team has competed in games against 8 playoff teams where they stand at 5-3 on the year. Four of those wins against playoff bound clubs have come on the road.
This is the Packers third straight road playoff games with wins at Philadelphia and last week earned a 48-21 blowout win at Atlanta as a +1 point underdog.
Green Bay put up 442 yards on the Falcons defense and converted on 8 of 12 on third down. The team ran it 31 times for 96 yards for a 3.1 yards per rush average. The Packers got in the end zone in 4 of 6 red zone appearances.
They also dominated time of possession by a 38-22 minute advantage. The team turned it over once and took 4 away from the Falcons and had a defensive score on an interception return.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed 31 of 36 passes for 366 yards with three touchdowns and no picks. Rodgers had two runs for 13 yards and a score.
Running back James Starks ran it 25 times for 66 yards and no touchdowns.
Greg Jennings had a solid performance with 8 catches for 101 yards. Jordy Nelson had 79 yards receiving with a touchdown on 8 receptions. Donald Driver contributed with 6 pass receptions for 76 yards.
On defense the Packers allow just 15 points and 305 yards per game.
Green Bay’s defense allowed the Falcons offense just 194 yards and 3 of 10 on third down. The Packers smothered the Atlanta run game by giving up just 45 yards on 14 carries for a 3.2 yards per rush average.
Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan completed 20 of 29 passes on the Green Bay defense for 186 yards with a touchdown and two picks.
The Chicago Bears plays at home in this NFC championship with an overall mark of 12-5 on the season. The team puts up 21 points and 298 yards per game.
The Bears are at home for the 10th time this season where they stand at 6-3. The home losses came against Seattle in the regular season, New England and Washington.
Chicago has played in 7 games involving playoff teams and went 4-3. In addition to the losses against the Seahawks and Patriots the club dropped a game to playoff bound Green Bay.
The Bears came off their playoff bye week and earned a blowout 35-24 victory in the NFC divisional round against the Seattle Seahawks as a -10 point home favorite.
Chicago opened up a 28-0 lead and coasted home. The Bears gave up 14 late points in garbage time to make the margin of victory look a bit more respectable for Seattle.
The Chicago Bears put up 437 yards and converted on 10 of 18 on third down. The club ran it 45 times for 176 yards for nearly 4 yards per carry. The Bears were a bit sloppy with 8 penalties for 71 yards. The Bears got in the end zone in three of three tries inside the red zone.
Quarterback Jay Cutler completed 15 of 28 passes for 274 yards with two touchdowns and no picks. Cutler ran the ball 8 times for 43 yards and two scores.
Running back Matt Forte ran it 25 times for 80 yards. Forte had three catches for 54 yards. Chester Taylor contributed with 44 rushing yards on 11 carries and a touchdown.
Tight end Greg Olsen had three pass receptions for 113 yards and a score. Johnny Knox had 48 receiving yards on four receptions.
On defense the Bears surrenders 18 points and 312 yards per game.
Chicago allowed the Seahawks offense just 276 yards and 3 of 14 successful tries on third down. Much of this yardage came late with the outcome well decided. The Bears allowed their NFC west opponent only 34 rushing yards on 12 carries.
Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck completed 26 of 46 passes for 258 yards on the Bears defense with three touchdowns and no picks.
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NFL Trend: The Under is 6-0 in their past 6 meetings.
Tags: betting, chicago bears, fox tv, green bay packers, january 23rd 2011, nfc championship playoffs, nfl, Odds, pick, preview, pro football, sunday
