Bears Playoff Win: End of 15-Year Drought

31-27 victory over ‘old enemy’ Packers… Divisional round against LA Rams on the 18th

“Let’s go to the Super Bowl!”

The Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) made another history at their home, Soldier Field.

In the National Conference wild card game held on the 10th, the Bears trailed 21-3 in the first half, but made a comeback in the last minute to win 31-27, earning their first playoff victory in 15 years since 2010, sending Chicago into a frenzy.

The Bears’ victory over the Packers on this day was the largest comeback victory of all time and the fourth NFL playoff victory in history when trailing by more than 15 points. This is the first time the Bears have defeated the Packers in the playoffs since 1941.

At the center of this day’s victory was second-year quarterback Caleb Williams. Williams made his playoff debut on this day, completing 24 of 48 pass attempts, recording 361 passing yards, 2 touchdown passes, and 2 interceptions. Williams turned the game around with a 25-yard touchdown to DJ Moore with 1 minute and 43 seconds left in the game.

After the game that day, Williams emphasized his unwavering confidence, saying, “It was all about faith. I had faith in my coach and teammates and that I would make the right play at that moment.” On the Prime Video postgame show, Williams directly expressed the meaning of victory in the rivalry game with a ceremony of grinding the ‘cheese’ symbolizing the Packers.

The Packers dominated the early part of the game on this day. Packers quarterback Jordan Love threw three touchdown passes in the first half alone, creating a 21-3 lead.

However, in the second half, the Bears defense began to overwhelm the opposing offense, and the offense began to gradually catch up.

The Bears, who lifted the momentum early in the fourth quarter with DeAndre Swift’s rushing touchdown, succeeded in turning the game around by scoring as many as 25 points in the fourth quarter alone.

The foundation for this turnaround was the leadership of new coach Ben Johnson. Even before the season started, he shared ‘perfect game videos’ and instilled in his players a team culture of never giving up until the end.

After the game, Coach Johnson said, “We keep holding on. We keep fighting. That’s the identity of our team this year,” emphasizing the team spirit that produced the seventh fourth-quarter comeback win this season.

As Coach Johnson said, “There are three wins left (to become the champion),” the Bears, who are aiming for the top spot in the Super Bowl, will play a divisional round game against the 5th seed LA Rams at Soldier Field on the 18th.

Reporter Kevin Rho