A Comedy Of Errors Dooms the Pack

Where do we even begin? The meltdown at Soldier Field on Saturday night will have short- and long-term ramifications for the Green Bay Packers organization. They’ve gone from Super Bowl contender to playoff hopeful in seven days, with key players finishing the game in street clothes for the second straight week.

One minute, it looked like the Pack had stepped up with the odds stacked against them. The next, we got to basically relive the 2014 NFC title game in Seattle.

Over the final 140 seconds of game time in regulation, the Packers committed a handful of mistakes that, in total, gave the Chicago Bears a chance to steal a victory from the jaws of defeat. There was the facemask penalty on rookie Warren Brinson, which breathed new life into a Bears drive late, allowing them to kick a field goal to make it a one-score game.

Chicago’s time mismanagement caused them to have to try an onside kick following the two-minute warning, and we all know what happened next — thank you, Romeo Doubs.

A miscommunication among Green Bay’s corners on fourth-and-four with the game on the line turned into a game-tying touchdown, thanks to a great pass from Caleb Williams under intense pressure to an undrafted rookie receiver who hadn’t caught a pass before Saturday night.

Then there was the botched exchange on fourth-and-one with the Pack driving in overtime that gave the ball to the Bears with a chance to win the game. Williams delivered the dagger with a deep ball to D.J. Moore from 46 yards out, right through the hearts of the Packers and their fans.

Just a comedy of errors all around erased what appeared to be a gutty, hard-nosed victory led by a great effort from Jeff Hafley’s short-handed defense and the mostly unflappable Malik Willis.

The Bears played this game with an edge from the opening kickoff, when they were hit with a personal-foul penalty for putting returner Bo Melton in a chokehold. Defensive end Austin Booker followed that script with a late hit on Jordan Love and then a cheap, helmet-to-helmet hit that knocked Love out of the game with a concussion. I mean, they even turned the heaters off on Green Bay’s sideline. That’s the Bears for you.

But for 58 minutes, the Packers had all the answers. Willis was outstanding in relief once again, leading the Pack on a 92-yard drive in the second quarter that made it a 6-0 halftime lead and making key plays with his arm and legs all night, none better than the touchdown pass to Doubs on a gutsy third-and-two call by Matt LaFleur.

That was the Pack’s only touchdown of the night, and it came outside the red zone, where they finished 0-5 and are now 1-9 over the last seven days. Part of the reason for the ineffectiveness is the status of Josh Jacobs’ knee — he hasn’t really been himself since injuring it against the New York Giants.

After not practicing all week, he gave it a go, but was clearly a shell of himself, averaging just three yards a carry and coughing it up inside the five-yard line. Emanuel Wilson was rock solid in relief, with 82 yards on the ground at almost six yards per carry. In retrospect, he probably should’ve gotten the start.

The Pack may need to count on Willis again next week, depending on Love’s concussion status. It’s notable that Willis injured his shoulder on the final play of regulation and appeared to be in quite a bit of discomfort. We’ll see how he came out of the game. We may need to prepare ourselves for the dawning of the Clayton Tune era next Saturday night.

Doubs injured his wrist on the ill-fated onside kick play, and the Pack lost tight end John FitzPatrick to an Achilles injury, leaving them with only Luke Musgrave available at the position on the roster. Wouldn’t be surprised to see them sign the ageless Marcedes Lewis this week, after the Denver Broncos let him go.

At some point, you sit back and face the reality that it just might not be your season. The Packers played most of this game without seven of their 10 or 12 best players: Love, Parsons, Kraft, Wyatt, Jenkins, Zach Tom, and Evan Williams. That they were in control and had a 99.5% chance to win the game at the two-minute warning speaks to the depth of the roster and solid coaching. But once again, they let a lead of nine points or more late in the game evaporate, a feature of four of their five losses this season.

The Pack can still win the North if they win out and if the Bears lose at San Francisco and against Detroit, but it’s far more likely that they’ll earn the seven seed for the third straight season. Their playoff chances still sit at 82% after the meltdown to the Monsters of the Midway. As things stand right now, these teams would meet again in the wildcard round. Sign me up for that right now.

Like most Packer fans, I tried to shut off my brain and go to sleep an hour or so after the game ended, only to face the stark reality that the events of the last seven days have zapped the ’25 Packers of a potential deep playoff run in a wide-open NFC.

You just can’t lose that many core players down the stretch, and you just can’t make that many mistakes and expect to beat anybody, whether it’s the Cleveland Browns or the suddenly competent Bears. Now we’ll see how they pick up the pieces and finish things out.