The Bears opened the season hosting rival Green Bay Packers, the 191st meeting in the two teams' history and the third season opener in which both teams played each other in Chicago; the Bears held a 93-91-6 all-time lead, and also led the series in season opener record with 17-12-2. However, the Packers had won nine of the last ten games between the two, including the last game, a 55-14 victory at Lambeau Field. WBBM-TV analyst Jeff Joniak believed the Bears would have to run to gain an advantage against the Packers; when Chicago played Green Bay in week four last season, the latter had the 30th-ranked run defense, and allowed 235 rushing yards in that game. Additionally, the offense had to avoid drives that required long yardage, as the Bears had scored 74 points outside of the red zone (the 29th-best in the league), while also protecting  quarterback Jay Cutler from linebackers Julius Peppers and Clay Matthews III. On defense, the new 3-4 defense faced a fast-paced Green Bay offense featuring quarterback Aaron Rodgers and tailback Eddie Lacy. The Rodgers-led Packers, who led the NFC North in touchdowns with 58, along with having the highest average yards per play (6.17) in the NFL in 2014, also provided a challenge for the Bears defensive backs; blitzing Rodgers was also a liability, as he had a league-best 130.4 rating with 15 touchdowns and one interception against the blitz. However, the Packers did not have receiver Jordy Nelson, who had caught 13 touchdowns in 2014, as he had suffered an ACL tear during the preseason.  quarteback David Fales, cornerback Tracy Porter, runningback Ka'Deem Carey, linebacker Jon Bostic, center Hroniss Grasu, tackle Tayo Fabuluje and receiver Cameron Meredith were inactive for the game. The Packers won the coin toss, and elected to defer, meaning the Bears started the game with the ball. On the first possession of the game, the Bears offense reached as far as the Packers' eight-yard line, but ended with Robbie Gould kicking a 28-yard field goal. After the Packers punted, the Bears came close to allowing a turnover when Cutler was sacked by Peppers and fumbled, though the call was reversed. The next four drives of the game ended in scores for both teams: the Packers scored with Rodgers' 13-yard touchdown pass to James Jones, followed by the Bears reclaiming the lead in the second quarter with Matt Forte's one-yard touchdown run; the next two possessions concluded with field goals: Mason Crosby tied the game with a 37-yarder, though the Bears ended the first half with the 13-10 lead with Gould's 50-yarder. Prior to Forte's touchdown run, Gould had kicked a 27-yard field goal, but Sam Shields was offsides on the play, giving the Bears a 4th and 1, which the Bears capitalized with via Forte's one-yard run. The Bears then had two potential touchdowns nullified by Forte dropping a pass, and receiver Alshon Jeffery's touchdown was canceled by tackle Jermon Bushrod's holding penalty. The Packers also had a potential touchdown hurt by a penalty, as Rodgers had an eight-yard touchdown pass to Jones voided by holding penalties. In the second half, the Packers scored quickly with Jones' one-yard touchdown catch. The Bears responded with Gould's 44-yard field goal, but the Packers eventually scored again via Randall Cobb's five-yard touchdown catch. On Chicago's following drive, the offense drove to Green Bay's six-yard line to set up a first and goal situation. While Forte's four-yard run brought the Bears to the two, Cutler's passes to Eddie Royal, Jeffery and Royal again fell incomplete, leading to the Bears turning the ball over on downs. The Packers punted again, but the Bears failed to score when Cutler was intercepted by Matthews; the turnover set up Lacy's two-yard touchdown run to increase the score to 31-16 with 1:55 left in the game. With 34 seconds left, the Bears scored with Cutler's 24-yard touchdown pass to tight end Martellus Bennett, narrowing the margin to eight points. However, Green Bay's Davante Adams recovered the onside kick, and the Packers ran out the clock to end the game. Gould's first field goal of the game allowed him to set the franchise record for the most field goals with 244, breaking a tie with Kevin Butler. Forte recorded 184 rushing yards in the game, the most by a Bears running back in a loss since Walter Payton's 175 yards in a 1984 loss to the Packers.. Who had the most rushing yards in the game?