Stop me if you’ve heard this before: The Green Bay Packers had a double digit lead on the road and only a couple of minutes remaining in the game. A score by the opponent made it a one possession game, but an onside kick was required to have a shot to win. Green Bay dropped the onside kick, gave up a late score and then lost on a dime of a pass by an exciting young quarterback in overtime.
That happened in the 2014 NFC Championship Game when the Packers lost to the Seattle Seahawks, and it happened again
versus the 11-4 Chicago Bears on a windy Saturday night in, uh, you know what city it is.
Down 16-6 with over two minutes to go, the Bears took way too long to kick a field goal and cost themselves a potentially valuable clock stoppage by losing the two-minute warning. Romeo Doubs played the role of Brandon Bostick and could not recover this onside kick.
Caleb Williams threw this 4th down touchdown against an all-out blitz to the little known, undrafted rookie receiver Jahdae Walker for the tying score.
Malik Willis, who played valiantly after Jordan Love left the game in the second quarter due to a concussion, was unable to handle a 4th and 1 snap in Chicago territory on Green Bay’s only overtime possession.
Bears ball, Bears game. Caleb Williams to D.J. Moore for the game, set, and match. The biggest regular season win the Bears have had in a long time.
Chicago’s 22-16 overtime win puts the Bears on the cusp of winning the NFC North for the first time since 2018, and now the Packers have to worry about making the playoffs, let alone staying alive in the division race.
What the Bears win means for the Seahawks’ No. 1 seed chase
We mentioned in the discussion post that a Packers win was preferable to create a path for the Seahawks to get the No. 1 seed before Week 17, but it’s otherwise not a result that has any deeper meaning for Seattle for the time being. Here are the latest standings:
Current NFC playoff picture
- Seattle Seahawks 12-3 (clinched playoff spot)
- Chicago Bears 11-4
- Philadelphia Eagles 10-5 (clinched NFC East)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7-7
- Los Angeles Rams 11-4 (clinched playoff spot)
- San Francisco 49ers 10-4
- Green Bay Packers 9-5-1
- Detroit Lions 8-6
- Carolina Panthers 7-7
Seattle can get the No. 1 seed by simply winning their final two games. Despite Chicago’s win, there’s still another way to have the dream scenario of not letting the division (and the top seed) come down to the final Sunday of the regular season.
How the Seahawks can clinch the NFC No. 1 seed before Week 18
- Colts win over 49ers in Week 16 AND;
- Seahawks win over Carolina Panthers in Week 17 AND;
- 49ers win over Bears in Week 17 AND;
- Falcons win over Rams in Week 17
Had the Packers won, the Seahawks would’ve needed a win over the Panthers, the 49ers to lose to either the Colts or Bears, and the Falcons to beat the Rams to lock up the top seed.
This set of results is highly unlikely to happen but not impossible. If the 49ers beat the Colts on Monday then Seattle cannot clinch the No. 1 seed before Week 18. The Seahawks can, however, clinch the NFC West in Week 17 with a win over the Panthers and losses by the 49ers against the Bears and the Rams to the Falcons.
The most important thing in all of this is that the Seahawks are in the playoffs, and they were obviously trendsetters in terms of chaotic comebacks in prime time over hated division rivals.
