Packers Morning Buzz: Green Bay 'wanted to make Mitch play quarterback'

Welcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com.

We'll start with Packers cornerback Tramon Williams hitting hard both on the field (he was flagged for unnecessary roughness) and off as Green Bay stunned Chicago 10-3 in the opening game of the 2019 NFL season Thursday.

The Packers' revamped defense made life miserable for Bears quartertback Mitch Trubisky (26-for 45 for 228 yards, an interception and a passer rating of 62.1). And this postgame comment from Williams sparked comparisons of Trubisky to much-maligned former Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.

“We wanted to make Mitch play quarterback," Williams said. "We knew they had a lot of weapons, we knew they were dangerous, we knew all of those things. But we knew if we could make Mitch play quarterback, that we’d have a chance.”

Pete Dougherty writes more about Williams, Trubisky and the Packers' dominant defense:

Tom Silverstein writes about the Packers' two Smiths being too much for the Bears:

The Packers never could get their running game going, writes Jim Owczarski:

Aaron Rodgers took the blame for the Packers' problems on offense, writes Ryan Wood:

Rodgers was asked whether the Packers' offensive struggles made the win "bittersweet":

Our new-look Packers Insider sums up highs and lows from the game:

How inept were the Bears on offense? At one point in the fourth quarter, they faced a third-and-40 situation (and Twitter reacted):

Bears coach Matt Nagy was blunt in his assessment of his offense:

Packers safety Adrian Amos made a huge interception late and savored beating his former team:

Olivia Reiner captures an emotional postgame hug:

High praise for Williams from the NFL Network crew:

Former Packers star Charles Woodson says the win proves the Packers spent their free-agency money wisely:

Here are seven things NFL.com's Grant Gordon learned from the Packers' victory:

The MMQB's Kaylyn Kahler writes about a clumsy night for the two offenses:

To Packers inside linebacker Blake Martinez, it was a thing of beauty:

Outside linebacker Preston Smith may become Mississippi State's favorite son:

Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report knows where the blame for the Bears' loss belongs:

The comments on this post offer a window into how Bears fans are feeling:

Here's the first TD of the LaFleur era:

It did not go well:

Packers defensive tackle Kenny Clark with an impressive swim move:

Former Packers defensive tackle Mike Daniels fully endorses Khalil Mack' ball-swatting behavior:

This may have been the loudest cheer of the night for frustrated Bears fans:

An Australian history teaches plans to attend every Packers and Wisconsin Badgers game this season. Why? Richard Ryman has the story:

This USA Today Sports ranking of the 100 biggest NFL draft busts naturally puts Tony Mandarich near the top of the list (No. 2). But the Packers pop up in a couple of other places as well:

2. OT Tony Mandarich, 2nd overall 1989, Packers: The Sports Illustrated cover boy deemed "The Incredible Bulk" prior to the draft — he had uncommon athleticism and size for the position at the time — was labeled "The NFL's Incredible Bust" only three years later. Mandarich's steroid-fueled body and poor work ethic didn't hold up against NFL competition, and he later descended into drug and alcohol issues. Any value he later provided at guard might have helped the Colts but obviously didn't do the Pack any good. But this context truly frames his failure: Mandarich was the only player selected in the top five that year who didn't wind up in the Hall of Fame. Troy Aikman went No. 1, but Green Bay passed on Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas and Deion Sanders.

60. Packers' 2001 pre-draft trade: That March, Green Bay shipped backup QB Matt Hasselbeck to Seattle for a third rounder and a first-round swap, which allowed the Pack to move from 17th to 10th. The Seahawks netted a Pro Bowl passer and Hall of Fame-caliber guard (Steve Hutchinson). The Packers got DE Jamal Reynolds (3 sacks in 3 seasons) at No. 10 and LB Torrance Marshall, who started twice in four years.

62. QB Rich Campbell, 6th overall 1981, Packers: Think Green Bay would have preferred Ronnie Lott, Mike Singletary, Howie Long or Rickey Jackson in hindsight?

Check out the entire list here:

Cherry Starr watched her first Packers game since the death of husband Bart:

If you want to attend the Bart Starr commemorative event, the deadline to register is today:

And finally ... Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes teams up with Rodgers in a series of ads:

Contact Stu Courtney at (920) 431-8377 or scourtney@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @stucourt