Aaron Rodgers celebrates with wide receiver Randall Cobb after the Packers' 33-28 victory against the Bears on Dec. 29, 2013, at Soldier Field. Cobb scored on a 48-yard reception with 38 seconds left.
Knowing he’d be closing out the 2020 regular season in the Windy City had Aaron Rodgers feeling slightly nostalgic last week.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback found himself recounting that magical night of Dec. 29, 2013 at Soldier Field. He returned after missing seven games with a fractured left collarbone to throw a winning 48-yard touchdown pass to Randall Cobb on fourth-and-8 with 38 seconds left to play against a seven-man blitz and with fullback John Kuhn getting just enough of on-rushing Bears edge rusher Julius Peppers to send the NFC North-champion Packers into the playoffs and the Chicago Bears into the offseason.
From spending the days leading up to the game trying to convince then-coach Mike McCarthy and team orthopedist Dr. Patrick McKenzie that he could play with his still-not-fully-healed collarbone, to converting three fourth-down plays during that unforgettable drive before the throw to Cobb, Rodgers hasn’t forgotten a single detail from one of the defining moments of a career that will eventually lead to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“I remember the whole week. It was a really crazy week,” Rodgers said. “Christmas night, we were off. It was a Wednesday. I went over to Mike’s place and we had a long conversation and by the end of the conversation, we had come to the conclusion that I was going to play that week, which was exciting.
“When it comes to the game, I remember being a little leery about getting landed on again, for sure. There was a hit early in the game that (was scary). I remember it being a back-and-forth game, and then the last drive, going for it on fourth-and-1 and barely getting it. Hitting the fourth-and-3 when Jordy (Nelson) kind of caught it off the turf, a low throw. And then fourth-and-8, Johnny coming over with the fantastic block and just the elation as the ball’s in the air and I’m fading back to the left watching Cobby run in the end zone. It’s just a moment that you never forget.
“The celebration in the locker room, the tears, the gratitude to be able to go out there and play with your guys. That’s definitely a top-five moment of my career here in Green Bay.”
Seven years later, the teams meet again at Soldier Field in a regular-season finale that again is filled with playoff implications. The stakes are different this time around, with the Packers (12-3) closing in on the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed — which comes with home-field advantage throughout the postseason and the conference’s lone first-round bye — and the Bears (8-7) one win away from the playoffs despite a six-game, midseason losing streak.
Both teams can get what they want even with a loss — the Packers can still get the top seed if the San Francisco 49ers beat the Seattle Seahawks, while the Bears can still get into the playoffs if the Los Angeles Rams beat the Arizona Cardinals — but neither team wants to cede control of their own destiny by losing.
“It’s going to be a great game. There’s a lot at stake obviously for both clubs,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “We’ve got to get our mind ready to play. It’s a playoff-game mentality.”
For the Bears, this marks the ninth time since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger that they have had a chance to secure a playoff spot on the final day of the regular season. In the eight games previous games, they’re 4-4, having won twice to make the playoffs; won twice and still missed the playoffs; lost once and reached the playoffs; and lost three times and missed the playoffs.
That they are even in this position is a minor miracle. After starting the season 5-1, the Bears lost their next six games — including a 41-25 loss to the Packers at Lambeau Field on Nov. 29, when they fell behind 41-10 before two garbage-time touchdowns. After a loss at home to the Detroit Lions the following week, the Bears won their next three games: a 36-7 win over Houston; a 33-27 win at Minnesota; and a 41-17 win at Jacksonville.
While those three teams entered the final weekend of the season with a combined record of 11-34, the victories have the Bears believing in themselves — and their quarterback, Mitchell Trubisky — again.
“For us to get that first win, it was very important for us mentally. And then, you build off that. … Our coaches have done a great job and our players have responded,” Bears coach Matt Nagy said. “Once you get that first win, then you have to get that second one. And once you get that, you just catch fire.
“When you lose six games like we did, it’s not easy. But our guys showed resolve and they kept fighting. We finally got that first win, and then it grew into two more. Now it’s a playoff-type game, and you wouldn’t want it any other way.“
For the Packers, meanwhile, the first-round playoff bye and home-field advantage could be the difference between a berth in Super Bowl LV in Tampa, Florida, and another disappointing postseason exit for Rodgers, who is on the cusp of his third NFL MVP award but still chasing his second Super Bowl berth.
“We obviously know what’s in front of us,” said Packers star wide receiver Davante Adams, who enters the game needing four catches to break Sterling Sharpe’s Packers single-season reception record (112 in 1993); 192 yards to break Jordy Nelson’s yardage record (1,519 in 2014); and two TDs to break Sharpe’s TD record (18 in 1994). “We control our own destiny as far as staying at that No. 1 spot. With them, it’s not the record they would have dreamt of having, but their back is against the wall, and it’s put up or shut up for them. So we just have to make sure we’re ready to go.”
When it comes to a playoff bye, the stakes have never been higher. Last year, in LaFleur’s first season, the Packers finished as the No. 2 seed and parlayed the bye into an NFC Divisional win over Seattle and a berth in the NFC title game, where they lost at San Francisco. But with the NFL expanding the playoffs to seven teams in each conference, there’s only one bye on each side of the bracket, meaning only one team will have the advantage of only needing to win two games to reach the Super Bowl. (The Kansas City Chiefs have already sewn up the AFC’s top seed.)
Rodgers knows full well how a loss in the regular-season finale can torpedo a postseason run. In 2012, the Packers were 11-4 and went to Minnesota to face the 9-6 Vikings. With a win, the Packers would have earned a first-round bye and ended the Vikings’ season. Instead, Adrian Peterson ran for 199 yards and the Packers lost 37-34. The 49ers got that bye week, and while the Packers were having to dispense with the Vikings in a wild card game, the 49ers had a week off to install a host of read-option plays for quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
Packers fans know all too well what came next: Kaepernick ran for an NFL single-game quarterback record 181 yards and two touchdowns, threw for 263 yards and another score, and Green Bay’s season ended with a 45-31 loss that wasn’t that close.
Now, reeling from All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari’s season-ending knee injury suffered during practice on Thursday, the Packers will try to regroup, refocus and secure the straightest path to the Super Bowl they can — and do it at the potential expense of their longtime rivals’ playoff hopes.
“Anytime you’re playing Chicago, there’s always that little extra that’s built in in the fabric of the organizations — from the history of playing so many damned games against each other, to the mutual feelings that both fan bases have for each other and the grinding games that we’ve had over the years,” Rodgers said. “I don’t think you need to add any extra motivation to this game. We both have something to play for. We’re playing for the 1 seed; they’re playing for their playoff lives. So there’s a lot at stake for both squads. We know what kind of game it’s going to be.”
January 03, 2021 at 09:00AM
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Packers-Bears showdown filled with playoff implications - Madison.com
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