Windy City Gridiron
The 2006 NFC Championship aside, this may have been the most important, and meaningful win in all my years as a Bears fan.
I won’t sugarcoat it, about midway through the 3rd quarter even I was muttering “same old Bears”, me, one of the most glass half full fans in the world. But even then, the Chicago Bears knew the game wasn’t over, and they had a strong message in store for us fans, the Green Bay Packers, and the NFL landscape:
This isn’t the same old Bears.
They did so in historic fashion, scoring 25 points in the 4th quarter to stun the Green Bay Packers 31-27, in what was the the 3rd largest comeback in Bears history (18), largest playoff comeback in Bears history, and largest blown lead in Packers playoff history.
A portion of the credit should be handed to the defense, who after a very rough first half, allowed just 6 points in the 2nd half by primarily blitzing and playing zone coverages after shifting from mostly man in the 1st half. This allowed quarterback Caleb Williams to deliver a 4th quarter of a lifetime. While saw 3 consecutive touchdown drives, where he amassed 195 total yards, 2 touchdowns, no turnovers and a 110.0 passer rating. Leading the Bears to their 7th come from behind victory on the season, and NFL record for quarterbacks under the age of 25. This run has only continued to cement his legacy as one of the leagues most clutch quarterback.
His 361 yards of passing set a Bears franchise record for passing yards in a post-season game. (And that number could have easily been north of 400 if not for some untimely drops.)
The game saw a laundry list of accomplishments, in addition to ones already mentioned, with the win the Bears became just the 4th team in NFL history to win a playoff game when trailing by 15 or more points entering the 4th quarter. It is also the 4th largest playoff comeback in NFL history, and they became only the 3rd team in NFL history to score at least 25 points in the 4th quarter of a playoff game in NFL history.
The fact that this all came against the Green Bay Packers, that may very well be the sweetest cherry on top.
The nail in the coffin came from one of the best examples of longform play calling.
None of that happens, of course, if Caleb doesn’t make on of the most important throws in his young career, and perhaps, one of the most important throws in Bears history.
Consider the context: 4th and 8 (by the way how AWESOME is it that we now have our own 4th and 8 play to hold over the Packers heads) your season on the line in the NFL playoffs, pressure baring down, rolling to your left, throwing on the run, in the air, ~37 air yards down field to a spot surrounded by 4 defenders and absolute dotting it,...
