Bear Digest

Bears' Misery Knows No End In Heartbreaking Loss to Packers

Blocked Cairo Santos 46-yard field goal extend's Chicago's losing streak to four straight and the losing streak to Green Bay to 11.

Gene Chamberlain

Jordan Love dives toward the end zone with Kevin Byard on the tackle attempt for the Bears in a 20-19 loss to Green Bay.
Jordan Love dives toward the end zone with Kevin Byard on the tackle attempt for the Bears in a 20-19 loss to Green Bay. / David Banks-Imagn Images
In this story:

The thud of a football meeting the hand told the sad story for the Bears.

A week of turmoil after the firing of offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and three straight losses was all in their past as Cairo Santos tried a game-winning 46-yard field goal Sunday, but Karl Brooks broke through the center of the line, deflected the ball and it skidded into the end zone. The blocked field goal meant the Bears had lost a series record 11th straight time to the Green Bay Packers 20-19.

"We should have had a walkoff field goal win there at the end there and again that didn't happen," coach Matt Eberflus complained. "We've just got to look at the (field goal) operation there at the very end.

"It takes true strength and true courage, I told them. Tough times don't last tough people do and that's where it's at right now. We've just got to get back to work."

His words couldn't mask the disappointment in the end after Caleb Williams directed a last-minute drive to field goal range with three huge drive-extending completions, two to Rome Odunze and one to Keenan Allen. However, Williams' 23-of-31 effort for 231 yards went for naught in one of the more evenly played and interesting games in this series' recent history.

The Bears offense came to life under new coordinator Thomas Brown and it bodes well for the future but doesn't make them better than a 4-6 team.

"Being able to do that today I think it builds confidence for us," Williams said. having those bright moments."

The brightest was the final drive, but it failed. It came after Jaylon Johnson stumbled and gave up a 61-yard completion to Christian Watson, and the Packers went ahead from there for good with Jordan Love's 1-yard TD sneak with 2:59 to play. The two-point conversion failed and allowed the Bears the chance to win with a field goal.

The drive started rather tentatively to say the least, with consecutive sacks of Williams. But he hit Odunze for 16 on third-and-19, then on fourth-and-3 took a big risk and threw on-on-one to Odunze down the sidelines for 21 yards to get the ball to the edge of field goal range. A 12-yarder to Keenan Allen put it into field goal range and they added a few yards with a run by Roschon Johnson before kicking.

"In terms of the operation from the 30, we ran the ball one time, tried to get a few more yards right there," Eberflus said. "We felt good about where the kick line was. Cairo has made a bunch of those kicks inside of that range. Again, we have full confidence in Cairo. We're confident in our operation there.

"Again I have to look at the tape in terms of the block but I feel good about where that was."

It was easily the most disappointing kick to end a Bears game since the Cody Parkey double-doink in the 2018 playoffs. Neither Santos nor long snapper Scott Daly thought the Packers had done something obviously illegal in terms of hitting the long snapper.

"We have to execute in that moment, which of course we did," Daly said. "They made a good play and that's what it came down to."

The Bears fought back from deficits of 7-0, 7-3 and 14-13 to lead 19-14 on a 39-yard TD run around left end by D'Andrew Swift in the last minute of the fourth quarter. Roschon Johnson had a 1-yard TD run in the second quarter to end their streak of possessions without a touchdown and Santos made field goals of 27 and 53 yards.

They outgained the Packers (7-3) 399 yards to 366.

None of it mattered when Brooks blocked the field goal.

"You've just got to feel it's unfortunate because we worked so hard to get in that position," Santos said.

Misfortune and how they handle defeat have become the themes to a disappointing 4-6 season for the Bears.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

Published |Modified
Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.