The Packers didn’t just reset their season in Week 5 by rolling past the Bears. They did it with a passing attack that lit up Chicago all afternoon and with rookie corner Brandon Cisse delivering exactly the kind of response Green Bay needed.
Cisse was matched up with the Bears’ rookie corner Malik Muhammad in a game that turned into a clear statement for the Packers’ second-rounder. Jordan Love went after Muhammad early and often, completing all six of his throws in coverage against him for 124 yards. Tyson Bagent tried his luck against Cisse, and the results were very different.
Cisse finished with a sack and was targeted only three times. He gave up one catch for 13 yards and posted a 47.9 passer rating allowed. After some early-season growing pains, and with Muhammad getting off to a strong start at the same time, this was the kind of outing Cisse needed to steady his momentum.
Green Bay drafted Cisse in the second round despite the concerns that he was a bit raw at cornerback. His overaggressive style often got him in trouble in college, where his eyes could be manipulated too easily, but the Packers were willing to bet on the physical tools. They’ve thrown him right into the fire, starting him next to Keisean Nixon and putting him against some of the best receivers in football from day one.
That setup is bound to produce some rough patches. Still, the speed and physical traits are there, and performances like this point to what Green Bay thinks it can build. As his feel for the position sharpens and his ball skills improve, Cisse can keep taking steps forward.
The bigger picture in the Packers’ win was how thoroughly they exposed a Chicago defense that had been outperforming expectations early this season. The Bears’ secondary includes Jaylon Johnson, a former star who has been extremely disappointing, and Tyrique Stevenson, who Bears fans are completely done with.
When Love had time, he carved them up. He completed six passes that traveled more than 20 air yards in the win, and since 2016, only Russell Wilson’s outlier Week 2 last season has produced more passing yards on deep throws in a game than Love did against Chicago in the Next Gen Stats era.
For Green Bay, it was a night where the offense blew the doors off its rival and the rookie cornerback on their side held up while the other rookie got picked apart. If Cisse keeps trending in this direction, the Packers may have something far more lasting than one strong Week 5 performance.
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