Overtime
10:46 p.m. 12:58 Bears' 1st Drive
Chicago 20, Green Bay 17
Gould 38 yd FG
Chicago wins the toss and elects to receive. Will the Packers even get the ball this time out, unlike the Tennessee game?
If so, they'll have to go 70 yards to the end zone, which means 40 yards to field goal range. That's too little.
Oh no! Not only a first down to Olsen, but a horse collar tackle by Rouse. 33 yard gain. Seven more to definite field goal range and a loss.
The defense gives it up again. The defense gives it up again. Not by lack of performance, but lack of brains and discipline this time.
Forte HIT IN THE BACKFIELD! And it's Rouse who makes the play on 2nd down. That's making up for it.
3rd and 9...MUST hold to nothing this play. Orton gets Forte for a first down to the 20 yard line and Forte beat Hawk. A lack of pass coverage by a linebacker dooms Green Bay again.
Field goal good from 38 yards out and the Packers have double digit losses for the first time since 2005.
4th Quarter
10:45 p.m. 0:00 Bears' 3rd Drive
Really, Bears' 1st kneeldown to go to OT.
10:43 p.m. 0:18 Packers' 3rd Drive
The eyes of planet Earth are on Aaron Rodgers. Will he finally make the comeback he hasn't produced yet, failing three times this year?
Blackmon gets open and gets wide open along the sideline and Adrian Peterson horse collars him out of bounds! An extra 15 yard penalty to put the ball deep into Chicago territory, to the Chicago 35 yard line.
Rodgers and Ruvell Martin on 1st down miscommunicated. Cue Led Zeppelin: "COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN!!!!"
Rodgers to Jennings and Graham made a great one-on-one tackle play to hold him to two yards. Good play call, just a great tackle.
3rd and 8....NEED a first down. Don't want a 51-yard field goal attempt.
Jones with a LEAPING catch for a first down over Graham and Jones felt the hard ground. Two minute warning...just run the clock down and get first downs, boys.
1st-10 at the Chicago 24...a short run with Grant and Chicago's calling time out, hoping for another shot.
2nd-9 at the Chicago 23-24, and Grant gets five yards, and Mason Crosby is warming up his leg as much as is humanly possible in 0' F.
3rd and 5 at the 19 1/2...and Grant gets zippo, setting up Crosby.
Is Crosby dreaming of a winning Christmas with a 38 yard field goal with:25 left?
No. blocked and the Bears knock it out of bounds. Overtime probable.
10:30 p.m. 3:11 Bears' 2nd Drive
Green Bay 17, Chicago 17
Forte 3 yd TD run
Uh oh...Forte in the open and A.J. Hawk has to chase him down after a 28 yard run. The Bears, like four straight opponents in the fourth quarter, are feeling it late on offense.
Forte again, and again, and again, and he's the meal ticket right now for Chicago as they run down the clock while trying to get closer to the end zone.
3rd down and they're at the four yard line after a Hester completion....and they stop Hester a yard short.
Fourth and 1 at the GB 4....HUGE, HUGE play here, people.
Forte up the middle...gets the first down as Pickett meets him. Four shots for the end zone with 3:00 left.
1st down: Forte up the middle, sifts through, and the Bears have tied this tame.
OK, Rodgers, overcome this "can't do it late" thing.
10:21 p.m. 7:36 Packers' 2nd Drive
Driver starts the drive well with a wonderful diving catch, but Tommie Harris hurt Rodgers for a six-yard loss and forces a 3rd and 13.
Momentum at stake with Chicago's crowd jumping. Rodgers has a pass blocked by the interior line.
Why am I fearful Hester may run one back? Hester has to dance, but gets a seam and gets to the Chicago 45.
10:15 p.m. 9:36 Bears' 1st Drive
Aaron Rouse gets up limping from coverage on the kickoff...that's a problem.
Nick Collins stopping what would have been a perfect throw-and-catch to Desmond Clark, as after Clark had it high above his head in his hands, Collins legally stuck his elbow in Clark's face guard. Beautiful stop.
Oh no....Forte gets into Green Bay territory with a smart swing pass with Forte.
I'm feeling like I did last time the Packers had a frigid night game...the NFC Championship....like this lead is not safe. I'm scared.
Orton is playing pitch and catch with his receivers...Olsen getting open. There's not much the Packers have been able to do to stop these guys over the last, seemingly, 50,000 years.
A 3rd and 10 near the GB 39...a perfect throw right to Nick Collins! The Bears fan here in the newsroom is pulling a few George Carlin words.
10:03 p.m. 12:58 Packers' 1st Drive
Green Bay 17, Chicago 10
Crosby 28 yd FG
Rodgers finds DeShawn Wynn close to the first down marker, right at the nine yard line...Wynn - where have we heard that name before? Last year, maybe?
4th and 1...get the points, Mike, don't think about going for it. Get the points.
Uh oh...he's going for it....big risk, four point reward, but if you fail, that's HUGE mo to Chicago.
DeShawn Wynn! He finally does what John Kuhn couldn't do, about 340 times this year...a first down.
And, of course, on 2nd down, Aaron Rodgers loses five on a QB draw that was well diagnosed.
And on 3rd down, Rodgers nearly gets picked.
3rd Quarter
9:54 p.m. 1:57 Bears' 3rd Drive
HUGE INT by Woodson! Great block by Rouse to get to the 30 yard line! Number 6 on the year and what a time to get it!
9:51 p.m. 3:31 Packers' 2nd Drive
The Bears force another 3rd down, but a managable two yards to go...DEEP PASS TO FINLEY! Great throw in the biggest play of Finley's rookie season. 34 yards, and finally, Finley shows up.
NO FLAG on Tillman for basically pulling on Driver at the five yard line? Tillman was hugging him and pulling him down! Come on!
3rd and 6 at the 28...and Rodgers' throw was off Driver's hands at the 13 yard line...fourth down.
Thanks, Matt Flynn, for bobbling the snap, forcing a low kick by Mason Crosby. No way was that good.
9:44 p.m. 6:23 Bears' 2nd Drive
Orton had Hester a step deep, but Harris snagged what could have been a deadly big play.
3rd down and 9, and the blitz by Rouse forced Orton to throw it right to Ryan Pickett, who knocked it down.
9:39 p.m. 7:35 Packers' 1st Drive
Now it's time for Green Bay to stem the momentum tide as the drunk crazies with no shirts on party it up for the cameras.
Nuts.
Starting at the 20 yard line with Driver back in the game...gusty...and Grant still has the momentum from the late first half. Good six yard run.
Right off the bat, a 3rd and 1...barely, barely, Grant got to the first down on forward progress.
Jennings dropping one near the ground on 1st down and McCarthy is shaking his head, but I can't see if he's saying any non-G rated words or not with the TV camera angles.
(Parents, just call me your censor.)
Rodgers had to get rid of the ball because he was about to be accosted by three Bears defenders, and Lance Briggs makes Grant pay for catching the ball on a four-yard loss.
Ryan, drop it next time.
3rd-14...Rodgers calls time out. Then, Moll with his second false start of the day...Jiminy Christmas! Stay with it, Moll! How many 3rd and 19 plays are there?
Grant just gets a one-yard gain.
Now, momentum is deep on Lower Wacker Drive.
9:26 p.m. 10:59 Bears' 1st Drive
Green Bay 14, Chicago 10
Orton-Olsen 7 yd TD pass
Hmm...the Bears forced into a 3rd and short, but the Bears haven't really gotten into the clear against the Packers' 4-2-5 defense with the run.
Michael Montgomery! Huge sack on 3rd down! That's double the sack total for the season so far for him in one game!
Oh no! A Packers touched the ball on Maynard's punt. Never mind the fact that Jarrett Bush was pushed into the ball...Jason Davis gets the ball for Chicago.
And the Bears look to now have life - a Desmond Clark 21-yard pickup on Tramon Williams' coverage. The Bears took advantage of help that the Packers had no business giving them.
Goal to go, boys - gotta hold 'em. First two downs, they listened...not 3rd down. Olsen wide open.
2nd Quarter
9:06 p.m. 0:00 Packers' 3rd Drive
Fast drive to get seven more points? Nope, go-to-the-locker room formation and let the boo birds rain down.
9:04 p.m. :44 Bears' 3rd Drive
Oh, the boo birds are out for Chicago, but they would be in Green Bay once they would see the Mason Crosby bounce-out-of-bounds kickoff.
The Bears start by taking advantage of soft coverage by Hester....easy catch, but it looks like the refs themselves are looking at the catch to see if it's right. The replay guys may have an angle that says the ball bounced. Boo hoo hoo, Chitown!
I think I actually saw Lovie Smith boo the result of the play as well.
INT and a drop by a Pro Bowler...Nick Collins! Talk about a dagger before halftime if you get that and pick six it!
The pass to Desmond Clark, though, gets him just four yards and it's another shot for the Packers offense.
8:56 p.m. 1:04 Packers' 2nd Drive
Green Bay 14, Chicago 3
Rodgers-Grant 17 yd pass
Allen Barbre with a great return for a lineman to get to the GB 42 yard line to start the drive...and the guy had all the enthusiasm of a 5th grader getting to run the football for the first time in his life during a flag football game.
WOW! Driver with a sensational catch...hang on...incomplete. And he had it, but it bounced out of his hands when he hit the ground. He also looks hurt, and the training staff is going out.
If Driver's out, that really hurts us, and he can't even put any weight on his left leg. Oh, that hurts.
He's crying as he comes to the sideline, and my guess is, it's more in frustration then physical pain, though it is huge.
3rd and 7 at the 45 of GB and it would be a waste if they can't get the first down with this pass protection...thankfully, James Jones takes in an 18-yard pass play!
Ryan Grant continues to lather up for his cold bath with a solid 12-yard gain as Rodgers comes to the sidelines for a two-minute warning conference and, hopefully for him, a gallon of hot chocolate.
Oh, love the keep pass....to Humphrey for a 15-yard gain. Love the keep pass!
Rodgers was in the grasp on the next play when he got rid of the ball, but Humphrey was in the zip code....never mind. Ineligible man downfield. It still stunk.
Grant on the screen and FINALLY! He breaks loose, thanks to a couple blocks with Spitz and Wells. Best screen since the 1990's!
8:41 p.m. 4:08 Bears' 2nd Drive
Daniel Manning got a seam on the kickoff return and dragged tacklers inside the Packers 30' yard line. Peprah and Blackmon were riding him like a bull rider, but Manning isn't a bull. Geez.
Talk about a momentum killer, and it's the often-soft kickoff coverage team that did nothing.
A first down throw put Chicago inside the 13...and what a great time for a sack by Michael Montgomery on 2nd down.
Thank you, Devin Hester, for being a volleyball player in training so that the pass that would have led to a touchdown was an INC instead.
8:34 p.m. 6:21 Packers' 1st Drive
Green Bay 7, Chicago 0
Rodgers-Jennings 7 yd TD pass
Again, the Packers can't do anything right with Ryan Grant and the run, and they can't do anything wrong with the short pass when Rodgers doesn't get his pass tipped at the line.
AGAIN! Rodgers with the slant to Driver in a five-inch slot where only Driver can catch it.. 17 yard gain.
They'll need more of it with Ryan Grant getting nothing - seven yard on seven touches so far.
A 3rd and five and Rodgers has eons to throw! Thanks, line, to help Rodgers and Jennings connect on a first down.
A 3rd and 2 at the CHI 37...aw, Corey Graham tipped away what was nearly a perfect pass. Perhaps slightly underthrown on a play where he was barely beat.
Smart to have Kapinos punt instead of a 54-yarder in 5 degree temperature...HANG ON! Matt Flynn gets the first down as the upback!
Chicago, you dummies! You might want to pay attention to who's on the field!
Finally, Ryan Grant gets slightly warmed up with a six-yard run. He said he warms up by running the football, but we'll need to see some big time RPM in this game.
He did it again...this time to the 13 yard line of Chicago out of the inverted wishbone. Larry says the Bears have never seen that play.
3rd and 4 at the seven....TOUCHDOWN! Perfect to Jennings, drilled into the front right part of the end zone.
8:22 p.m. 13:58 Bears' 1st Drive
Jason Hunter with a no-gain "sack" on Orton to force a 4th down, and they take a delay of game to push the football back and give Maynard more of a chance to pin the Packers back.
Brad Maynard line-drived a punt to the nine yard line. That's why they did the delay of game.
1st Quarter
8:17 p.m. 0:00 Bears' 3rd Drive
The Bears use Hester as a receiver and they match him up on A.J. Hawk. Can you say monster mismatch?
8:13 p.m. 2:05 Packers' 3rd Drive
Well, 10-minute discussions about replays mean a momentum swing, if there was any. Of course, the Bears can force some momentum their way with a two-yard loss.
That went out the window with a 2nd-12 delivery from Rodgers to Nelson, then a 1st-10 delivery from Rodgers to Kuhn for 12 yards.
Grant is just not getting much, because up the middle, the Packers' O-line isn't getting much at all.
NO! Rodgers had a pass tipped by Daniel Manning and Alex Brown INT'd it.
8:02 p.m. 4:54 Bears' 2nd Drive
Chicago starts at their 35 yard line, and Green Bay forced a 3rd down 10. Orton delivered a great throw to Brandon Lloyd, so good that Lloyd cowered down to the ground to avoid the throw! We kid of course, as Lloyd just slipped.
Will Blackmon barely missed touching the football on the punt on 4th down, and the Bears actually carried the football in the end zone. Barely a touchback.
7:57 p.m. 6:44 Packers' 2nd Drive
A penalty for a block in the back sets Green Bay back...well whaddaya know, the same old story. Starting at the 13 yard line.
Aaaagh...Rodgers just missed Driver wide open on the bomb that would have been a touchdown.
There's some YAC! Ruvell Martin...a 15-yard play for a first down. Yackety, YAC! Don't go back to 14th in the league in the stat.
Oooof....Graham nearly INT'd Rodgers on a slight underthrow as he tried to thread the needle to Jennings.
Thankfully on 3rd down, Rodgers got rid of the ball as he got blitzed near the 18 yard line or it's a BIG loss.
7:50 p.m. 9:46 Bears' 1st Drive
We see the Bears starting with their whole throw to the tight end philosophy, because they have killed the Packers with them in recent years.
Kampman and Hawk big on 3rd down to stuff Forte a yard short at the 24! That's called stopping the run.
7:47 p.m.
Already, Larry McCarren has the line of the day..."if he gets a fire in his rear end." No further comment.
7:46 p.m. 11:13 Packers' 1st Drive
A good Blackmon return of 32 yards got Green Bay in reasonable business, and they start off with a quick slant to Jennings. I like that type of pass - nice and short in potentially windy conditions.
Tony Moll moving before the snap? What is this, he saw icicle coming at him? Geez. Thanks, Rodgers, he needs to say for the throw to Driver to get the first down and bail him out.
They're really featuring the short pass for a couple reasons, to try to stretch out the defense and to get short 3rd downs, which are much more managable. They're 6th in the league on 3rd down? Why did they stink at it weeks ago?
Well, they stunk on it this down.
Pregame
7:38 p.m.
Green Bay calls tails on the coin flip to start the game and gets it. They will start the game with the football.
7:35 p.m.
The Bears are playing the Badgers "fourth quarter" song, "Jump Around," before the game begins. Perhaps it's necessary to jump around the whole time to stay warm.
7:31 p.m.
Atari Bigby, Korey Hall, Justin Harrell and Brandon Jackson are all out tonight. For Chicago: just Jason McKie.
The Bears, or many of them, are sleveless in their jerseys. I guarantee you, a lot of it is stuff they rub on their arms that keep them warm.