Packers linebacker Jayrone Elliott wraps up the Bears’ Matt Forte in the third quarter Sunday. Forte gained 122 yards on 23 carries. Credit: Mike De Sisti

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Chicago — At least the Green Bay Packers' run defense got one thing right Sunday at Soldier Field.

The response to being torn apart for 235 yards by the Chicago Bears was blunt, self-critical and immensely on point.

"It was utterly (expletive) pathetic," said linebacker Mike Neal. "Excuse my language."

The Packers rolled, 38-17, scoring their most points against the Bears since 2003. No thanks to what now qualifies as the NFL's worst defense against the run.

After getting shoved around by what had been the Bears' 32nd-ranked rushing offense (64.0 average), Green Bay is allowing 176 yards per game at the quarter mark of the season.

The franchise record for most rushing yards allowed in a 16-game season is 180.3 in 1979, when Bart Starr was coach and Dave "Hawg" Hanner was in his final year as defensive coordinator before being fired. The overall record is 218.3 allowed by coach Lisle Blackbourn's 1956 squad.

"This is just all-around embarrassment," defensive end Mike Daniels said. "But I can only speak for myself.

"Me personally, I'm going to say I sucked. I just have to play worlds better than I did."

Nose tackle B.J. Raji rolled his eyes leaving the locker room after watching Matt Forte carry 23 times for 122 yards (5.3) and rookie Ka'Deem Carey finish with 14 attempts for 72 (5.1).

At 340 pounds, Raji would have been the primary shock absorber against runs between the guards, which is right where coach Marc Trestman aimed most of his rushing onslaught.

"I know," Neal said, referring to the interior focus. "They had 200 yards in the first half or something. That's just unacceptable."

Raji was lost Aug. 22 with a torn biceps that required season-ending surgery. Former Viking Letroy Guion, a 315-pounder, is no Raji.

"B.J., he's an awesome player," Daniels said. "But that's football. Guys go down and you have to do a good job filling in."

Nose tackle Mike Pennel, a 332-pound rookie, played in his first game in what might be the start of an expanded role.

"I feel I played my assignment well," said Pennel. "Now I hope it'll get me more playing time."

As willingly as the players accepted responsibility, they were effusive in their praise for the Bears' diverse ground game under the play-calling Trestman.

"You'll see it on tape," said Daniels. "They've got a real good scheme. This is my third time playing him. He's really a smart guy. He took advantage of us a couple times. He coached a good game."

In the opener, Seattle's Marshawn Lynch hit the Packers on mostly power plays in which he often found daylight cutting back. His 110 yards came on 20 rushes.

The Jets' Chris Ivory had 13 carries for 43 yards in Game 2 before Reggie Bush picked up 61 in 12 trips for Detroit.

The Bears threw the kitchen sink at the Packers, and almost everything worked.

"Trap and draws, trap and draws, trap and draws," Neal said. "They kind of did a good job of one-upping us on that inside run game.

"Forte is an all-purpose back. He's one of the better backs I've played against. He can do it all."

The Bears would have approached 300 yards if the Packers' defensive backs had missed more open-field tackles. Several times, Forte was one man away from being off to the races only to be cut down.

Out of the Bears' 41 rushes, their longest gain was just 19 yards.

It all came back to the belly-bumping inside, according to Daniels, an exercise in which the Packers graded "F."

"Up front, they got after us," said Daniels. "We just have to be more stout at the point."

What made the results even more awful was the realization that the Bears had gone nowhere on the ground against the front sevens of Buffalo, San Francisco and the New York Jets.

Forte was averaging 3.2 yards. Carey, a fourth-round draft choice, had two carries for 4 yards.

"It's embarrassing, because when you think of somebody rushing for a lot of yards, the first thing you think of is the D-line," said defensive end Datone Jones. "That's the blame you've got to take.

"We're not satisfied at all."