CHICAGO — Vintage Aaron Rodgers turned into unfiltered Aaron Rodgers on Sunday.
It wasn’t necessarily what the Green Bay Packers quarterback did with his play in another of a long list of wins over the Chicago Bears. It was what he said in the Soldier Field end zone after his 6-yard touchdown scramble in the fourth quarter that sealed the Packers’ 24-14 victory.
The Fox TV cameras — and microphones — clearly picked up Rodgers’ message to the Bears’ faithful.
“All my f—ing life, I own you,” Rodgers shouted as he was congratulated by his teammates. “I still own you. I still own you.”
Said Packers running back Aaron Jones, who joined in the celebration: “What can you say? He’s right.”
It was Rodgers’ 22nd win over the Bears, including the playoffs (the 2010 NFC Championship Game). His 22-5 record against the Bears gives him the third-best winning percentage (.815) by a quarterback against a single opponent since 1950, with a minimum of 25 starts, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Only Tom Brady (32-3 vs. the Bills, .914) and Ben Roethlisberger (23-3-1 vs. the Browns, .870) have had more success over one team.
But that’s not what entered Rodgers’ mind after his touchdown. He did his trademark championship-belt celebration, known as the “Discount Doublecheck,” but then noticed someone in the stands.
And then, in his words, he blacked out … “in a good way.”
“I looked up in the stands and in the front row all I saw was a woman giving me the double bird,” Rodgers said. “So I’m not sure exactly what came out of my mouth next.”
Everyone knows now.
“Listen, all I can say is: A lot of stuff gets said on the field that nobody ever hears,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “It’s one of those moments of competition where things get said and … I don’t know what Aaron said about it, I’m sure you guys asked him. … Again, it’s a competitive game, and I think that’s one of those moments where you see the competitor in Aaron come out.”
Rodgers, whose future with the Packers beyond this season remains uncertain, said that never entered his mind before, during or after his reaction.
“Not in the moment,” he said. “I thought about that a lot pregame for sure. … I don’t think this is my last one, but I have enjoyed every single of them.”
Bears coach Matt Nagy didn’t seem too concerned with or bothered by Rodgers’ reaction.
“I just think for us we worry about what we do,” Nagy said. “I didn’t see any of that or anything like that. For me my biggest thing right now is whatever we can do to get better and win every game, including Green Bay, we need to do it.”
It came just days after Rodgers raved about how much he likes Chicago as a sports city.
“I love playing at Soldier Field,” Rodgers said. “I said this week, I have a lot of respect for the fans. I’m sure there’s a little bit of respect coming back my way, not a lot of love, I’m sure.”
Rodgers was an efficient 17-of-23 for 195 yards with two touchdown passes and the rushing score. It was Rodgers’ 29th career game with both a passing and rushing touchdown, the third most in NFL history after Cam Newton (42) and Steve Young (31). But it was Rodgers’ first rushing touchdown against the Bears since the 2010 NFC Championship Game.
He got plenty of help from running backs Jones and AJ Dillon, who combined for 169 total yards and a touchdown on 28 touches, and receiver Davante Adams (four catches for 89 yards) plus a patchwork offensive line that was already without All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari and lost center Josh Myers to a knee injury in the first quarter.
It was Green Bay’s fifth straight win over the Bears, dating back to LaFleur’s first game vs. Chicago as the Packers’ coach in 2019. It also gave the Packers (5-1) a two-game lead in the NFC North over both the Bears (3-3) and Vikings (3-3).
ESPN Bears reporter Jeff Dickerson contributed to this report.