The Chicago Bears didn’t have much to play for on Sunday in Green Bay other than to ruin the Packers’ playoff seeding.
But, with this being the final game of the Bears’ 2024 season, all the stops were pulled out… even on special teams.
The first touchdown scored in this game was the result of some punt return trickery by the Bears, as Josh Blackwell scored from 94 yards away untouched after the Packers had no clue he even had the football.
That’s because the Bears sent out two returners near the end zone, and one of them was acting like the ball was going their way.
Meanwhile, Blackwell was running back down the left sideline and saw the ball coming his way. So, as his teammate acted like he was just going to let the ball fall and hope it resulted in a touchback, Blackwell caught it and started running toward the end zone on the other end of the field.
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It wasn’t until Blackwell had a load of blockers in front of him that the Packers saw what was going on, and only Green Bay punter Daniel Whelan knew what was happening. However, he didn’t have a chance to take down Blackwell, as two Bears players blocked him to seal the first touchdown of the game.
Blackwell found some Bears fans in the back of the end zone and attempted a “Lambeau Leap” to pour a little salt in the wound for the Packers.
While the Bears don’t have anything but the NFL Draft to worry about with a 4-12 record coming into the game, the Packers do have some seeding to look at in the NFC playoff bracket.
The Packers are in the playoffs, but a win and a Washington Commanders loss would put them in the No. 6 seed instead of the final No. 7 wild card slot. Washington is in a close matchup with the Dallas Cowboys on the road at AT&T Stadium.
Chicago’s 2024 campaign started with tons of optimism, most surrounding No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, and the team started 4-2, which brought up loads of playoff speculation.
But the Bears have lost 10 straight games since, ultimately leading to the firing of head coach Matt Eberflus and GM Ryan Poles. Once again, they are thinking about the future as they aim to continue building around Williams.
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