Caleb Williams’ 25-yard strike to DJ Moore with 1:43 left didn’t just clinch a 31-27 win—it flipped the NFC bracket, exorcised 15 years of playoff misery and announced the Bears as legitimate Super Bowl threats.
How the Bears pulled off the unthinkable
Trailing 21-3 at halftime and 21-6 after three quarters, Chicago needed a quarter for the ages. They got it:
- Three touchdown drives in four fourth-quarter possessions, each faster than the last.
- 25 unanswered points until a garbage-time Packers field goal made it 31-27.
- Zero punts and only one third-quarter field goal before the eruption.
The dagger came on 2nd-and-7 from the Packers’ 25. Williams bought time with a subtle slide in the pocket, locked onto DJ Moore breaking free along the left sideline and dropped it in the bucket for the 25-yard go-ahead score with 1:43 left.
Williams’ playoff debut already rivals any in Bears history
No Chicago quarterback had ever thrown a fourth-quarter playoff touchdown to take the lead inside two minutes. Williams did it in his first postseason snap, finishing 22-of-33 for 289 yards and three touchdowns against a defense that sacked him four times in the first half.
The rookie’s 126.4 fourth-quarter passer rating is the highest by any Bear in a playoff period since the merger, topping Jim McMahon’s 1984 divisional-round effort.
Seven comeback wins now define Ben Johnson’s first season
Chicago’s 31-27 victory marks the seventh time this season the Bears erased a fourth-quarter deficit under first-year coach Ben Johnson. That leads the NFL and doubles the franchise single-season record set in 2001.
Johnson’s aggressive second-half adjustments—more 12-personnel, motion-heavy outside-zone and a blitz rate that jumped from 18% to 42% after halftime—overwhelmed Matt LaFleur’s Packers for the third time in 14 months.
Packers’ collapse ends their road—and maybe an era
Green Bay’s 21-3 halftime lead evaporated via three straight three-and-outs and a brutal turnover on downs at midfield. Jordan Love still passed for 312 yards, but the Packers managed only 42 second-half rushing yards and allowed five explosive plays (20-plus yards) after intermission.
The loss is Green Bay’s third straight at Soldier Field and drops Matt LaFleur to 1-4 in the postseason since 2021. With free-agent decisions looming on Rashan Gary, Elgton Jenkins and 32-year-old Aaron Jones, the roster reset starts tonight.
What the win means for the NFC bracket
Chicago’s victory locks them into a home divisional-round matchup against the No. 2 seed, guaranteeing at least one more playoff game at Soldier Field where they are 9-1 this season. The crowd noise registered 118 dB on Williams’ touchdown—louder than any regular-season moment, per ESPN’s in-stadium tracking.
With the NFC’s top seed still alive and the Bears surging, the path to the conference championship now runs through Lake Michigan snow instead of Lambeau frost.
Next up: a franchise poised for January runs
Chicago has young, cost-controlled stars on both sides: Williams on a rookie deal, receiver Rome Odunze, linebackers Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards, plus an offensive line whose oldest starter is 26. Cap space projects north of $65 million in 2026, per Over The Cap, giving GM Ryan Poles flexibility to chase a second-tier free-agent receiver or edge rusher before the trade deadline.
Combine that with seven projected draft picks—two in the top 50—and the Bears have both the momentum and the ammunition to chase the franchise’s first Super Bowl berth since 2006.
Stay locked on onlytrustedinfo.com for the fastest postgame film breakdowns, advanced stats and insider notes as Chicago chases a title—because if Saturday night proved anything, the next momentous play is never more than 1:43 away.
