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Immediate reactions to the Bears' walk-off win over Green Bay | After The Whistle
In one of the craziest finishes the NFL has seen this year, the Bears stun the Packers and take control of the NFC North. Tina, Lou, Pat and Jim share their instant reactions to the win.
It's official: The Chicago Bears are in the playoffs.
When the Detroit Lions lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, it brought the Bears back to a place they haven't been to since 2020.
What we know:
In an insane twist of irony, the Chicago Bears found themselves rooting for… Aaron Rodgers.
The long-time Packer and Bears' villain delivered the Bears their first NFL playoff berth since the 2020 season, when the Bears backed into the playoffs as a Wild Card team.
The Lions' loss clinched the Bears a playoff berth.
With 6:41 left in the game, Jaylen Warren pushed the Steelers ahead with a 45-yard rushing touchdown to put Pittsburgh up 29-17. After that, the clock was ticking on the Lions, but they answered with a Jahmyr Gibbs touchdown.
With four minutes left, the Steelers went on a methodical drive that ate clock and marched into Lions' territory. But, drama ensued when Steelers' kicker Chris Boswell missed a field goal to put Pittsburgh up by eight with two minutes remaining.
That gave the Lions the ball with a chance to score a go-ahead touchdown, but the Steelers held to seal the win.
It was a messy win, where the Steelers won on the final play where Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown committed offensive pass interference on a play where he lateraled the ball to Jared Goff, who scored. However, the penalty on the Lions negated the touchdown and ended the game.
Coming into Sunday, the Bears needed two things to happen to clinch a playoff spot in the most direct way:
- Beat Green Bay
- Have the Lions lose to tie
The Bears got both.
They're in the playoffs.
Final Word: How far can the Chicago Bears of destiny dream? That's for you to decide
Yes, yesterday was real. The Bears beat the Packers and proved how they really are a team of destiny. How far can they go? Ultimately, that's for you to decide.
The backstory:
The Bears' magical ride will continue, especially after their magical and improbable win over the Packers improved their Bears' record to 11-4.
The Bears rallied from 10 down with two minutes to go in the game, getting a Cairo Santos field goal, recovering an onside kick, scoring a touchdown on fourth down inside the Packers' to force overtime and walking-off the Packers with a 46-yard touchdown from Caleb Williams to DJ Moore.
It was the Bears' sixth comeback win in the final two minute of a game this season.
"I couldn't be more proud of the group," Bears coach Ben Johnson said. "I'm just very fortunate to be in the position I'm in coaching these guys and not something I take for granted so I'll go ahead and open it up from there."
That was the Bears' first win over the Packers at Soldier Field since 2018.
"I saw something that we haven't beaten Green Bay since 2018 here, something like that," Williams said. "I understand it, I've been in these type of rivals. I've been in rivals where my team hasn't beat an team maybe or whatever the case may be and these moments are awesome. Truly, they're awesome. To be able to have these moments, be a part of these moments and I've been lucky enough to be on the right side of a lot of them."
What's next:
Now that the playoffs are decided, all eyes turn to the NFC North division title.
The Bears can win the NFC North division title next week with a win. In fact, if the Bears win just one of their final two games against the 49ers or against the Lions, the win the NFC North champs.
The Bears play San Francisco on Sunday Night Football in Santa Clara next weekend. They finish the regular season at home against the Detroit Lions.