George McCaskey has seen his fair share of Bears and Packers games. After the 2025 NFL season, the Chicago Bears' chairman believes the two NFC North teams are finally on the same playing field.
Before the 2025 season, the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers ' rivalry has been consistently one-sided for the better part of two decades.
The Packers have dominated the Bears, winning 31 of the last 42 matchups since 2006.
But that dynamic changed when Ben Johnson was named as the team's head coach. During his introductory press conference at Halas Hall, he said he enjoyed beating Packers head coach Matt LaFleur twice a year.
Johnson's Bears won two of the three games against the Packers last season, including the 22-16 overtime win -- voted NFL's Moment of the Year -- and the 21-point comeback victory during their playoff matchup at Soldier Field.
Johnson’s postgame 'F--- the Packers' statement went viral, but it wasn't just a heat-of-the-moment comment. The Bears' coach has doubled down on his dislike for Green Bay ever since.
Those two games alone signaled a key change in the historic rivalry. The Bears have shown Green Bay and the rest of the NFC North that they are true competitors.
And for someone like George McCaskey, this was a long time coming. The Bears' chairman believes his beloved team has what it takes to remain competitive within the division and a big reason for that is because of Ryan Poles, Johnson and Caleb Williams.
"It's best rivalry in sports," McCaskey told Fox 32's Cassie Carlson. "The fact of the matter is they have had the upper hand for way too long, and to think that we are now in a position, we have what I think are the three critical elements to success: outstanding general manager, outstanding head coach, outstanding quarterback."
McCaskey also mentioned that the Packers have the same critical elements in their organization in general manager Brian Gutekunst, head coach Matt LaFleur and quarterback Jordan Love.
"So, it's going to be fun in the years to come," McCaskey said.
The challenge for the Bears moving forward is proving that 2025 wasn't just a "one-off" year. Johnson has already emphasized his team must put last year's successful season in the past and made that well known to reporters during the NFL annual league meeting.
For the Bears to build off last season, Poles must identify impact prospects in the upcoming draft, and Johnson must mold those rookies alongside the core group of players already on the roster. Then Williams have to continue developing under Johnson, which remains one of the top priorities.
As McCaskey said, Poles, Johnson and Williams are the critical elements of the organization, and the Bears will only go as far as that trio can take them.