Flashback 2002: Brett Favre and Donald Driver Reach Major Milestones for the Packers in a Win Over the Bears

Brett Favre became the third fastest quarterback to reach the 40,000-yard mark for his career while Donald Driver recorded his first 100-yard receiving game as the Green Bay Packers defeated the Chicago Bears 34-21 on Monday Night Football. The game was played in Campaign, Illinois, as Soldier Field in Chicago was under renovation. The Packers defense also made major contributions to the win including a dramatic pick-six.

Flashback 2002: Brett Favre and Donald Driver Reach Major Milestones for the Packers: The Buildup

The 2002 Green Bay Packers entered this game with a 3-1 record while the Bears were 2-2. The Packers were coming off two close wins over the Lions and Panthers. The Bears had dropped their last two games by one score after winning their first two contests.

If the Packers won this game, they would put themselves two games ahead of the Bears in the standings. A Bears win would give both teams 3-2 marks and make this a tough battle in the NFC North.

Favre entered the game needing 262 yards to reach 40,000 yards for his career. If he reached that milestone, he would be the third fastest player to reach that milestone behind Dan Marino and Warren Moon. Marino reached 40,000 yards in just 153 games while Moon did it in 165. This was the 166^th game of Favre’s Hall of Fame career.

A Fast Start for the Packers

Both teams punted on their first offensive possession of the game. Green Bay started its second possession at its own 15. It took just one play for the Pack to get on the scoreboard. The Packers lined up in a two-tight end set which made the Bears think Ahman Green would run the football. Instead, Favre faked a handoff and rolled to his left before launching a bomb deep downfield to Driver. He caught it at the Chicago 30 behind cornerback R.W. McQuarters and safety Mike Green and easily ran it in for the first score of the game. The quick strike gave the Packers a 7-0 lead.

The Green Bay defense forced a three-and-out and Favre went back to work. He mixed runs and passes to move the team 76 yards on 10 plays. Key gains included a 14-yard pass to Green on 3^rd-and-13, a 13-yard run on an end around by Driver and a 17-yard completion to Driver. The drive ended on a 19-yard pass from Favre to tight end Tryone Davis. The Packers led 14-0.

The Bears answered on a drive aided by a long kick return and a pass interference call against Matt Bowen. Jim Miller threw a four-yard touchdown pass to Marty Booker with 1:59 left in the opening quarter to make it a 14-7 contest.

Flashback 2002: Brett Favre and Donald Driver Reach Major Milestones for the Packers: A Back and Forth Second Quarter

Favre quickly responded by throwing the ball downfield against a vulnerable Chicago secondary. He hit wideout Terry Glenn for 21 yards and then two plays later, connected with Javon Walker for 17 more. Then it was back to Glenn for a 26-yard gain. In the red zone, Favre again went for his tight end as Bubba Franks caught a five-yard touchdown pass to make the score 21-7 Green Bay.

A fumble by Driver set up the Bears next drive. Mike Brown returned it all the way to the Green Bay four. Three plays later, Miller threw a one-yard touchdown pass to John Davis to once again pull Chicago to within one score at 21-14.

Favre pulled off another drive in the final minute of the half. Glenn caught passes of 10 and 16 yards that set up a 49-yard field goal by Ryan Longwell on the final play of the half. That gave the Packers a 24-14 halftime lead.

A Big Play Helps the Packers Pull Away

The Packers defense put the game out of reach in the third quarter. The Bears drove to the Green Bay 20 when Miller’s pass was intercepted by Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila. Pressure by defensive end Joe Johnson forced the errant throw. KBG returned it 72 yards for a touchdown to make the score 31-14.

“J.J. had great pressure on the quarterback,” Gbaja-Biamila said. “I saw the ball come right to me and I took off. I didn’t want to do anything silly with the ball.”

Packers defensive coordinator Ed Donatell loved what he saw. “It was a great, great individual effort. It was a great guy to have the ball fall into his hands. You knew he’d take it the distance.”

Darren Sharper intercepted Miller to end the next Bears drive. Unfortunately, injuries took a toll on the Packers defense in the second half. Johnson suffered a torn triceps and was lost for the game in the third quarter. Sharper injured his hamstring while making the interception. Defensive backs Tyrone Williams and Bhawoh Jue suffered hamstring injuries and cornerback Mike McKenize strained a groin in pre-game warmups. At one point in the second half, the Packers had Glenn preparing to play cornerback if necessary. Fortunately, he didn’t have to play defense.

Flashback 2002: Brett Favre and Donald Driver Reach Major Milestones for the Packers: A Big Win

The Packers added another Longwell field goal while Chicago scored a fourth quarter touchdown to make the final score a little more respectable. The final score was 34-21 Green Bay.

Favre reached his milestone of 40,000 career yards early in the second half. The milestone came with a revamped offensive line. Left tackle Chad Clifton suffered a stinger while blocking during the extra point on Green Bay’s first touchdown in the first quarter. So, center Mike Flanagan moved to left tackle and Frank Winters stepped in at center. Clifton managed to return to the game late in the first half.

“It was a big win for us,” Johnson said. “We’ve just got to keep fighting. It was a very good game to build on.”

“I think this is the kind of game that the coach was looking for,” Gbaja-Biamila said. “To just play the way we played together, coming together with people going down, stepping up and things like that, I think this is the kind of game we were looking for.”

The Aftermath

Favre finished the game 22-of-33 for 359 yards, and three touchdown passes.

“That’s number four. As a receiver, all you have to do is get open, and he will find you,” Glenn said after the game. He finished with eight receptions for 154 yards. Driver added four receptions for 120 yards, and Green ran 27 times for 107 yards.

On defense, Gbaja-Biamila finished the game with two sacks, a forced fumble and the 72-yard interception return for a touchdown.

“It would be pretty hard to top the effort that Brett Favre had, as well as the receivers, the offensive line protecting him and the backs,” coach Mike Sherman told reporters after the game. “He is who he is because of the way he practices and approaches the game. He was excited on the sidelines and animated. He was into this game, and his leadership and his performance was a big part of our victory.”

With the win, Favre improved his record to 17-4 against the Bears. It was also the Packers ninth straight road win against Chicago.

The Packers record improved to 4-1 while the Bears dropped to 2-3. Green Bay would finish the season with a 12-4 mark and won the NFC North crown. The Bears finished 4-12 after a 2-0 start to the season. This proved to be a memorable game for Favre and Driver and a big win in Chicago for the Packers on Monday Night.