Green Bay Packers: 3 takeaways from Thanksgiving Day loss to Bears

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The Green Bay Packers honored Brett Favre on Thursday, but Jay Cutler and the Chicago Bears' defense ruined the celebration.

Cutler, who was 1-11 against the Packers as Chicago's quarterback, led the Bears to a big upset of first-place Green Bay, 17-13 at rainy Lambeau Field.

At halftime, the Packers unveiled Favre's name beneath the north end-zone scoreboard alongside the other five players whose numbers were retired. Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr, who has battled severe health issues, also appeared to a thunderous ovation.

However, for the first time in 13 games against the Packers as the Bears' quarterback, Cutler did not throw an interception.

"It's huge," Cutler said. "It's been a fun week for me. The Sunday game, and having a baby on Monday and turning around and playing on Thursday, I think that everyone is looking forward to going home and spending some time with family."

Chicago's defense had two takeaways, and they were both huge. The first set up a first-half touchdown. The second came with 3:19 remaining in the game.

With the Packers trailing 17-13 and having reached midfield, Rodgers fired a slant to Davante Adams. The wide receiver, however, was knocked off his route by safety Chris Prosinski, and cornerback Tracy Porter grabbed the interception.

"It was a slant route and I threw it on time, and (Adams) ran into the safety that was coming down to get (tight end) Richard (Rodgers)," Aaron Rodgers said. "So it was a gift interception there for Porter."

Green Bay (7-4) got one more chance, taking over at its 20-yard line with 2:45 remaining. However, the drive ended with a fourth-down incompletion from the Chicago 8-yard line.

What we learned about the Packers:

1. Jordy Nelson's torn ACL turned a vaunted passing attack into a group that is a long way from mediocre. While slot receiver Randall Cobb had a big game with six catches for 74 yards, Davante Adams caught two of 11 passes for 14 yards, with one of his two drops being a potential touchdown in the first quarter. James Jones caught none of the six passes thrown his way. "No excuses, man," Jones said. "Catch the ball. That's our job, we're receivers -- catch it."

2. With the passing attack in such a funk, the Packers need to lean more on their running game. After a miserable four-game stretch, running back Eddie Lacy has rebounded with back-to-back 100-yard rushing games. On a night when Rodgers averaged 4.7 yards per passing attempt, Lacy averaged 6.2 yards per carry, and the one-two punch of Lacy and James Starks piled up 144 yards on 24 carries. "Every game plan I've ever put together starts with the run game," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.

3. McCarthy has preached the importance of situational football all season. It just hasn't shown up. The Packers were 3-for-11 on third down. They haven't been at even 50 percent in a game since the Week 1 contest at Chicago. Green Bay has been good in the red zone for most of the season but went 0-for-2, including the pivotal failure at the end of the game, when it couldn't get the ball into the end zone after having first-and-goal from the 8. How often are the Packers going to score a touchdown in 100 tries from the 8? "A hundred," guard T.J. Lang said.

Etc.

--QB Aaron Rodgers' funny bone was no laughing matter. During the third quarter of Green Bay's loss to Chicago, the Packers quarterback chased down an errant shotgun snap and was tackled by Bears LB Lamarr Houston. Rodgers immediately clutched his left hand as he jogged off the field, and backup QB Scott Tolzien immediately grabbed his helmet and began to warm up. Ultimately, Rodgers didn't miss any time, but he clearly wasn't 100 percent. "I lost feeling in my hand for a good portion of the game there in the third quarter, fourth quarter," Rodgers said. "I'm waiting to get it back in a couple fingers, but it's OK in the first three."

--RB Eddie Lacy has back-to-back 100-yard games after rushing for only 78 yards during a four-game stretch. He gained 100 yards on 22 attempts vs. Minnesota last week, then carried 17 times for 105 yards and added a 25-yard touchdown reception Thursday against Chicago. However, he fumbled at the end of a 15-yard run, with Chicago turning that giveaway into a touchdown. "Very frustrated, especially since they scored after it," Lacy said. "When you're in any position where you have to carry the ball, what you don't want to do is fumble. I didn't see the guy behind me. I should've just kept it with two hands and just went to the ground and live to play the next play. But when you fumble, it's not a good feeling."

--WR James Jones didn't catch any of the six passes thrown his way a week after a 100-yard receiving performance at Minnesota. Jones said he should have caught the third-and-goal pass that would have provided the winning points in the final minute. "I dropped it. Period. It sucks, man," Jones said. "You let your team down. We had an opportunity to win the game, and I dropped the ball."