The Green Bay Packers finished the 2024 regular season with a thud. Jordan Love and Christian Watson both exited with injuries, the Chicago Bears got a game-winning field goal as time expired and Matt LaFleur’s team dropped a second consecutive game entering the postseason with a 24-22 defeat at Lambeau Field in the season finale.
The loss snapped the Packers’ 11-game win streak over the Bears, who won at Lambeau Field for the first time since 2015. Green Bay is now locked into the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs.
The loss stings, and the injuries add salt to the wound. Love should be fine, but Watson — a playmaker in the passing game — is unlikely to be available as the Packers prepare to play the 14-3 Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Round next weekend.
Here’s the good, the bad and the ugly coming out of the Packers’ loss to the Bears:
The Good
The defense: Although the finish late marred the performance overall, the Packers defense otherwise played well. The Bears finished with only 224 total yards, and seven of Chicago’s 24 points came via a punt return touchdown in the first quarter. The Bears averaged 3.9 yards per play, 4.5 yards per pass attempt and 3.2 yards per run attempt, and the Packers forced two turnovers, including one late to set up the go-ahead field goal. This was a winning performance from Jeff Hafley’s defense. The other two phases of the game — offense and special teams — failed the Packers on Sunday.
The Bad
Jordan Love’s passing game: Love completed only seven passes across five possessions with the No. 1 offense before exiting with an injury. The Packers passing game is in a funk, and a reckoning must happen before going to Philadelphia in the NFC Wild Card Round. Can this team go on a run without Love getting super hot in the postseason? It’s hard to imagine.
The finish: In so many ways, the Packers finish to the 2024 season raised red flags. One year after winning their way into the postseason, Matt LaFleur’s team limped into the playoffs losing back-to-back games against divisional rivals. Green Bay ended the year 0-5 against the Eagles, Vikings and Lions and 1-5 against the division. On Sunday, the Packers had a chance to put away the Bears on multiple occasions late and failed. LaFleur’s ill-timed timeout before Brandon McManus’ field goal saved the Bears previous seconds, and then the Packers gave up an explosive play on 3rd-and-11 to create the opportunity for Cairo Santos to win the game on the final play. The margins are so thin in the NFL, and the Packers are losing on the margins to end the 2024 season. But it’s a new season when the playoffs start next weekend.
The Ugly
Injuries: Losing isn’t fun, especially to a rival at home, but the Packers had so little to play for — the difference of one seed in the postseason field — that the only thing that could have truly made Sunday’s season finale a big defeat was suffering a costly injury or two. Well, that’s exactly what happened. Christian Watson suffered a non-contact knee injury, and it appears his 2024 season is over. Four plays later, Jordan Love fell hard on his right elbow, lost feeling in his throwing hand and missed the rest of the contest. On just one series, the Packers lost a huge playmaker on offense and then saw the quarterback suffer a right arm/hand injury. Love is confident he’ll play next week, but he’s been dealing with injury all season and needed to be healthy entering the postseason. We’ll see next week if there are any other injuries coming out of this loss for the Packers.