Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdown passes to lead the Green Bay Packers to a 31-23 victory over NFC North rivals the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field this evening.
Robbie Gould was the first to register on the scoreboard when he sent a 28-yard field goal between the posts, but it was Green Bay who picked up the first touchdown of the match.
James Jones, who only re-signed for the Packers on Monday, marked his return in style with a fine catch from Rodgers's 13-yard pass on the left side of the endzone.
The Bears notched their first touchdown of the new season to regain the lead, however, as Matt Forte barged his way over the line from just a yard out.
A Mason Crosby field goal levelled things up again for the reigning NFC North champions, but it was Chicago who would go into the halfway stage with the lead courtesy of a 50-yard Gould kick in the closing moments of the second quarter.
Jones swung the game back in the Packers' favour on the opening drive of the second half, however, collecting a one-yard pass from Rodgers to register his first multi-touchdown game since a 2012 victory for Green Bay over the Bears.
Gould fired over his third kick of the match to make it a one-point game, but Rodgers combined with Randall Cobb for a five-yard touchdown in the final quarter to give his side more of a cushion.
Jay Cutler's attempts to engineer what could have been a match-equalling drive were halted in their tracks when he was picked off by Clay Matthews to hand Green Bay the ball with less than four minutes remaining.
The Packers took full advantage of that turnover to all but put the game beyond the Bears, with Eddie Lacy's two-yard run opening up a 15-point gap with 1:55 on the clock.
Chicago refused to give in and provided one late rally when Martellus Bennett and Cutler combined for a 24-yard score, but it was too little too late for the hosts.
Barney Corkhill
