Packers vs. Bears: What Are Experts Saying About Green Bay?

At 1-2 and tied for last place in the NFC North, the Green Bay Packers' Sunday matchup against the Chicago Bears, which is the second in a stretch of three intradivisional games, would be a crucial early-season win. 

After the performance it has turned in over the first three weeks of the season, it's unclear whether Green Bay's sputtering offense will be able to take advantage of an injury-ravaged Chicago defense. 

Moreover, if the Packers and Eddie Lacy continue to struggle on the ground, even Chicago's makeshift Cover 2 defense could prove to be stifling to the Packers' passing attack. 

Let's take a look at what some of the area beat writers are saying about the matchup between these archrivals and then break down what the Packers will need to do to pull out a win Sunday. 

Tyler Dunne: Eddie Lacy Is Key to Offensive Success

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As Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes, the key to offensive success for the Packers is for Eddie Lacy and the run game to become enough of a factor again this season that defenses will game-plan for it:

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Right now, the key to Green Bay's offense is Lacy snapping out of his funk. In theory, that'd bust everything else open. Defenses would drop a safety down. Rodgers would take shots deep. Harmony would be restored to an offense that lit a match to the record books weekly not too long ago.

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After averaging 18.9 attempts per game and 4.1 yards per carry in 2013, Lacy has only been carrying the rock an average of 12 times per game for just 3.1 yards per attempt. James Starks hasn't made much of an impact either.

Especially when opposing defenses show Cover 2 to the Packers, as the Detroit Lions did last Sunday, the Packers need to run to move the ball down the field and open up the passing game for Aaron Rodgers. In that regard, Mike McCarthy was right to stick to trying to force the run against Detroit.

Unfortunately, it neither made a difference for the offense nor caused the Lions to bring one safety down to the box.

If Green Bay can't get the run going against Chicago, even with its depleted secondary, Rodgers will once again find that his preferred targets struggle to get open.  

Bob McGinn: Packers Are Facing a Bears Secondary Depleted by Injuries

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Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel observes that the Packers have an opportunity in the passing game against Chicago that they haven't capitalized on so far this season: "For the third straight game the Green Bay Packers will be playing a team that's either inadequate or depleted by injury in the secondary."

Chris Conte, Ryan Mundy, Charles Tillman...the names of the members of the Bears secondary that either won't or may not suit up against the Packers are eye-popping.  

Against the New York Jets, Chicago played with rookies Brock Vereen and Ahmad Dixon at safety. 

The Detroit Lions' woes in the secondary were perhaps even greater than Chicago's, but the Packers could not take advantage. The Lions played Cover 2 against Green Bay, and Rodgers struggled to find open targets.

On paper, Green Bay should have an easy time shredding Chicago's makeshift secondary. In reality, the team hasn't yet proved this season that it's capable of that.

Rob Reischel: Packers Secondary Gets Greatest Test Against Marshall, Jeffery

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Facing off against top receivers Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery could be one of the most daunting tasks for Green Bay's secondary this season, argues Rob Reischel of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Green Bay's deep and gifted secondary will get arguably its greatest test of the season trying to defend Chicago's dangerous receiver duo of Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery."

Add tight end Martellus Bennett to that list—he and Marshall are both tied for the second-most touchdowns in the league through three games with four apiece.  

Marshall and Jeffery haven't quite yet this season reached the level of production they enjoyed in 2013, when they each finished with more than 1,000 yards. Injuries have played a role in that.

But with the two of them plus Bennett on the field and Matt Forte to deal with down near the box, Green Bay's secondary will have to choose when to use the nickel against the Bears' receiving threats. 

Mike Spofford: Packers Have Started Slow at 1-2 for Third Straight Year

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Over the last three seasons, as Mike Spofford of Packers.com points out, the Packers have started the year at 1-2. And each season, it sends fans into a panic: "At 1-2, the Packers as a whole have again started slow, and Sunday’s game against the division rival Bears could go a long way toward determining whether history repeats itself for a third straight year."

In 2012 and 2013 after losing two of its first three, Green Bay made the playoffs. But it's hard to imagine that this squad, in its current iteration, could make it far against the Seattle Seahawks or even against division rival Detroit Lions.

After going 1-2 in 2012, Green Bay dropped two of its next four games before winning four straight heading into the Week 10 bye. Last season, the Packers dropped to 2-2 after losing to Cincinnati in Week 4 before winning four in a row after that.

Mike McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers have never in their time together let a slow start turn into a bad season. At the same time, the offense hasn't looked quite this off since closer to when Rodgers became the starter. Whether or not that happens in 2014 will depend on play-calling and player execution. 

Rob Demovsky: Packers Need to Run More Plays

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Rob Demovksy of ESPN.com argues that the Packers need to run more plays in order to find success on offense: "What the Packers need—and what the whole point of the no-huddle was supposed to be—is to run more plays. Officially, they ran just 51 against the Lions, a long way short of their goal of 75 offensive snaps per game."

Green Bay ran approximately 67 plays per game in 2013, which was Mike McCarthy's second-highest total in eight seasons, per NFL.com's Kevin Petra. 

Running 51 plays against the Lions is not only far short of their goal of 75 for 2014, but it's significantly fewer plays per game than the team averaged last season—seven games of which Green Bay was without Aaron Rodgers.

In order to go faster, the Packers will rely on their 11 personnel (three receivers, one running back and one tight end) remaining on the field, which can mean that variety is sacrificed as a result. That has already proved to be true in the loss against Detroit. 

Against the Bears, the Packers will have to balance speed and variety to be successful on offense.