It was the kind of game that had come to haunt the Green Bay Packers in recent years. An early lead against an NFC North rival led to mid-game stalls. Special teams mistakes created lost points. Green Bay had been fortunate just to get to 2-2, barely escaping the New York Jets and a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team led by an undrafted rookie at quarterback. In between those three-point victories was a thorough Thursday night stomping at the hands of a then-winless Atlanta Falcons.
Thus, after a 14-0 early lead became 14-7 and the Packers responded with a three-and-out, it wasn't hard to imagine another late collapse against the Chicago Bears. When a potential two-minute drill was snuffed out by a pair of Thomas Booker sacks -- part of unit thatranks
19th in pressure rate -- the capacity for failure was as high as ever.
But Green Bay did not suffer the ignominy of a loss to a Bears team starting backup Tyson Bagent at quarterback. Instead, the Packers climbed over .500 for the first time all season. It was a cathartic win for multiple reasons; the most important being this. Despite the offensive line injuries that previously slowed the offense to a crawl, Jordan Love went out there and, to borrow a term from the world of scientific analysis, threw the hell out of the ball.
OH MY GOSH
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) October 11, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/qyqGYPEsIB
Love was an absolute wagon in Week 5, exploiting the weaknesses in the Chicago secondary and proving Christian Watson and Matthew Golden are a proper 1-2 punch atop this depth chart following an offseason in which Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks each left Wisconsin. Watson and Golden combined for 12 catches on 15 targets, racking up 266 yards between them.
That's because Love threw seven deep balls Sunday. He completed six of them, all to either his top wideouts or run-after catch machine/tight end Tucker Kraft. He finished his day with 258 passing yards on throws that traveled at least 25 yards downfield and a perfect 158.3 rating in those situations.
Jordan Love on throws 25+ yards downfield vs the Bears:6-7258 yards2 TDs0 INT158.3 passer rating
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-10-11T20:18:44.271Z
A recombobulated offensive line took advantage of Chicago's weakness up front. Booker's two half-ending sacks were the only two Green Bay gave up. With time to stand in the pocket and the determination to get throws off even with linemen bearing down on him, Love shined.
He connected with wide open receivers:
Say it with us now... LET'S GO!!!
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) October 11, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/zLLSOq0xW5
He connected with covered ones:
mannnnn Jordan Love is on one today
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-10-11T19:20:12.672Z
He made magic happen on plays that didn't count (J. Michael Sturdivant's first career touchdown was negated by offensive pass interference when what should have been a subtle push-off to create space got Jaylon Johnson in the face):
J Michael Sturdivant hauls in his first NFL touchdown on third and long but, whoops, gets flagged for OPI after getting his hands on Jaylon Johnson's face
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-10-11T18:41:36.064Z
This was an incredible performance from Love. His ability to hit targets in stride downfield with a passing arsenal that included both rainbows and lasers made him the football equivalent of Pink Floyd night at the local planetarium. He decided he was done wallowing in what looked like a lost season (and still may be) and blew the doors off his team's biggest rival. A season that looked hopeless after Week 3 -- extra hopeless considering the club's first round pick belongs to the Dallas Cowboys thanks to the Micah Parsons trade -- has new life.
This does not mean the Green Bay Packers are fixed. The rebuilt offensive line fended off an unimpressive pass rush. Despite early returns from MarShawn Lloyd:
MarShawn Lloyd runs over Jaylon Johnson, then hits him with the "too small"
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-10-11T17:35:21.580Z
Green Bay's running backs gained 64 yards on 22 carries. Watson, Golden and Kraft comprised 330 of Love's 367 passing yards, suggesting a team with a deeper secondary can create problems for an offense that has to throw the ball a ton to stay efficient.
Rookie kicker Trey Smack left seven points on the field by missing an extra point and two field goals from inside 50 yards. The defense snapped back into form, but that's because Chicago was without its starting quarterback and most effective tailback, leading to moments like this:
McHIMMY
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) October 11, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/7erp637G1R
Still, 31-7 felt like a statement. It was a wrecking ball into the gloom that chased this team through the first month of the season. Green Bay didn't blow this lead. Jordan Love kept his foot on the gas and proved he had a Ferrari engine underneath the hood across four quarters. That's got the Packers back into too-early playoff contention -- even if that statement came against a team forced to play Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum at quarterback.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: The Packers' cathartic win over the Bears showed they aren't cooked yet
