Could anything be more exciting than a gridiron clash between the 4-8 Packers and the 3-9 Bears?
Don’t answer that.
Still, though, Bears-Packers will always be a big deal here and up north. Sunday at Soldier Field, the old rivals get after it again. We probably don’t have to tell you which team usually emerges victorious, but what about this time? In this week’s “Polling Place,” your home for Sun-Times sports polls on Twitter, we asked voters to pick a winner.
“Need you ask?” @JeffreyCanalia posed rhetorically.
“It’s an SOS: same old story,” @JBIRD1268 wrote. “Packers win.”
We also asked if beating the Packers — oh, so rare — would be worth the Bears potentially moving down in the 2023 draft.
“I hope they lose the rest,” @j23airkenny offered, willing to take one on the chin from Green Bay yet again.
Finally, we asked about the quality of a rivalry that has been far too one-sided for far too long: Is it still one of the great ones?
On to the polls:
Poll No. 1: It’s Packers week for the Bears. Who wins Sunday at Soldier Field?
Upshot: What actually makes this one more than a little compelling is that both No. 1 quarterbacks — Packers oldtimer Aaron Rodgers and Bears youngster Justin Fields — come in hurting. If both play, it’ll bring some weightiness to a game between bad teams that don’t really have anything at stake beyond draft position and job auditions for next season. But the Bears will also take any chance they can get to sneak a “W” past their tormentors.
Poll No. 2: Is beating the Packers worth potentially moving down a few spots in the 2023 draft?
Upshot: The results say no, even though @MikeDon121848430 says yes, adding, “Stupid question. There should be absolutely no thought about next year’s draft during this season.” Come on, now, Mike — there are no stupid questions, just stupid writers who make up questions.
Poll No. 3: Considering the Packers have “owned” the Bears over the last 30-plus years, is this still a great rivalry?
Upshot: Look how close this vote is. It’s kind of sad, isn’t it? But give a whole bunch of respondents credit for seeing things as they are, not how they used to be. “Anyone who says this has been a rivalry in the last 30 years hasn’t been paying attention,” @thamanaynyexp1 offered. If only it had been possible to ignore it all.