Ten days ago, the Green Bay Packer offense sealed a crucial victory on fourth down against a division rival. Sunday night, on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field, the Packer defense sealed a crucial victory on fourth down against a division rival. Keisean Nixon intercepted Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams in the end zone to ice a 28-21 win, and move the Packers past the Bears for first place in the NFC North. 

“There’s a lot of confidence that comes with going through some struggle – whether it’s football or life – and being able to overcome it,” coach Matt LaFleur said via packers.com. “I personally think resiliency is the key to life. You’ve just got to keep battling and we’ve got a bunch of guys in there that are willing to do that.” 

While LaFleur’s philosophical statement focused on a very big picture, it certainly applied to the Week 14 game, and to Nixon himself. The seventh-year corner essentially spotted the Bears three points in the first half when he committed two personal foul penalties for 30 yards in the same drive. To be fair, the second penalty call was egregious. 

“Football is an emotional game, especially when you talk about Packers Bears,” LaFleur said after the 211th meeting in the NFL’s oldest rivalry. “There’s a heightened sense of emotion and you can’t do anything that hurts the team. However, I will say that I was proud of how he responded. To have that interception at the end of the game was obviously a critical moment.” 

The interception occurred on a fourth-and-1 at the Packer 14 with 27 seconds left. Chicago coach Ben Johnson called for a play-action pass to have Williams roll to his left with pass catchers rolling with him at different levels of the defense. Tight End Cole Kmet aligned inline on the play side and had the deep route. He briefly snuck wide open on an apparent coverage bust as three defenders covered the running back to the short flat. 

Thankfully for the 80,000-plus screaming Cheeseheads, Nixon had followed his man across the field in time to peel underneath the open Kmet. Williams missed his chance, and out of options late in the down he left the pass short for Nixon to pick. 

The final of four second-half drives was the only one in which Chicago didn’t score. Green Bay controlled the game at halftime with a 14-3 lead, but a sloppy three-and-out to start the second half set the stage for a back-and-forth affair. 

“I thought they did a nice job in the second half making whatever adjustments they made,” LaFleur said. “They kind of controlled the game in the second half, but luckily when they scored we were able to answer a couple of times. It’s always a play here or a play there and that’s the difference in the game.” 

The Bears had 23 more offensive snaps in the second half and possessed the ball for a whopping 10:47 more (excluding a Packer kneel down). Chicago fought all the way back to tie the game at 21-21 with eight minutes remaining. Jordan Love, Josh Jacobs, and the Packer offense answered in the clutch like they have numerous times this season. 

Jacobs started the drive with an 11-yard run. Then, Love feathered an 18-yard pass to Jayden Reed in his first game since a broken collarbone sustained in week two. Jacobs gained eight yards over two plays on a run and a catch to set up a third-and-2 at the Chicago 34-yard line. 

LaFleur elected for an outside pitch to Jacobs which resulted in four unblocked Bears surrounding him three yards behind the line of scrimmage. Somehow, the Alabama workhorse charged right through the sleuth unscathed for a 21-yard gallop. He pounded the ball into pay dirt four plays later. 

“That was a hell of an individual effort,” LaFleur said as he described missed blocks on the play. “He put his foot in the ground and all of a sudden I saw a burst right in front of my face.” 

Green Bay grabbed the 11-point halftime lead thanks to a two-touchdown second quarter. Love opened the scoring when he found Christian Watson for 23 yards on a third-and-10. 32-year-old safety Kevin Byard was left man-to-man against Watson in the slot as the Bears blitzed. Love had little pressure and Byard had little chance keeping up with Watson on a deep crosser, 7-0. 

Chicago took advantage of the Nixon penalties for a field goal, but Love answered on the next drive with a 45-yard, busted coverage pass to Bo Melton, 14-3. 

After the Packer three-and-out to start the final 30 minutes, Johnson used play-action passes to get Williams in rhythm. The former Heisman Trophy winner sprinkled in some impressive throws along the sideline, including a one-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-11 after a two-point conversion. 

On the next drive, the Bears dialed up another third-down blitz with a safety playing man-to-man against Watson. Watson beat Chauncey Gardner-Johnson on a quick slant for a quick strike – 41 yards and a 21-11 advantage. 

“He’s a dynamic player,” LaFleur said about his fourth-year receiver. “I’m just really proud of how he’s responded and how he’s worked to get into a spot now where (he) can go out there and you see what he can do.”

Watson tore his ACL just over 11 months ago on the same field against the same team. Sunday, he caught all four of his targets for 89 yards and two touchdowns.

Chicago hit a field goal to make it a one-score deficit. The Packers’ second three-and-out of the second half preceded a long 17-play touchdown drive for the Bears, 21-21, to set up the final eight minutes.

Love, despite a bonehead first-quarter interception that proved inconsequential, finished with a 120.7 passer rating in another MVP-caliber performance. He completed 17-of-25 passing for 234 yards and three touchdowns. 

Jacobs churned out 86 yards on 20 carries and the score. Reed also caught all four of his targets, going for 31 yards. He added 22 rushing yards on two attempts. 

The Packer defense held Williams to an abysmal 6-of-14 passing for 32 yards in the first half. He finished 19-of-35 for 186, two touchdowns, and the game-deciding interception. 

The Packers currently lead the division at 9-3-1, and have the second seed for the NFC playoffs. The Rams and Seahawks have the best records at 10-3. The loss drops the Bears (9-4) from the one seed at the start of the day to the seven seed. The Detroit Lions are currently eight, and the only team at 8-5. The Packers travel to Denver next week before they face the Bears at Soldier Field on December 20. 

Other Notes

• After a career day at Detroit, Dontayvion Wicks saw limited action in the first half and did not return. LaFleur confirmed he and fellow receiver Matthew Golden are still dealing with their respective injuries. 
• Numerous big calls or no-calls went against Green Bay throughout the game. LaFleur declined to offer much of an opinion, but did sarcastically lament that he doesn’t know what a holding after replay showed Micah Parsons fighting through a no-call, partial chokehold on the Bear’s final drive. 
• After Johnson fired a shot at LaFleur in his introductory press conference, the post-game handshake between the coaches lasted less than a second. LaFleur confirmed nothing was said.