GREEN BAY, Wis. – Lovie Smith obviously would have preferred a different result Sunday at Lambeau Field. But after a 10-3 loss to the Packers, the Bears coach opted to focus on the big picture.
Even though they allowed the Packers to earn the final spot in the NFC playoffs, the Bears ended the day just as they had started it: With the NFC North title and a first-round bye in their back pocket.
“I’m still proud of the effort that we gave today,” Smith said. “I’m proud of our football team as we look at the regular season, and that’s what we’re going to do. I’m disappointed in the loss today, but not disappointed in what the team has been able to accomplish up until this point.”
After the Falcons clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC with a win over the Panthers earlier Sunday, the Bears took the field against the Packers locked into the No. 2 seed win or lose. Despite that situation, the Bears played their starters on both sides of the ball for the entire game.
“Knowing that we had the bye week, we weren’t playing for an awful lot,” Smith said. “But we wanted to just keep momentum going. We hadn’t peaked yet. We still thought there were some things we could improve upon, and that’s what we went into the game to do.
“It was a great opportunity for us to get into the playoff mode as much as anything and to have a chance to as it turns out play against a playoff team and see how we matched up.”
The Bears (11-5) will open the playoffs at noon on Sunday, Jan. 16 at Soldier Field. They will play the Eagles if Philadelphia beats the Packers next Sunday. If Green Bay wins, the Bears will host the winner of next Saturday’s game between the Saints and Seahawks in Seattle.
After allowing 36 and 34 points in two of their last three games, the Bears played well on defense Sunday. They permitted just three points through three quarters, limited the Packers to just 2-of-11 on third down and held Green Bay running backs to 39 yards on 16 carries.
The defense also generated two takeaways as Charles Tillman recovered a Donald Driver fumble that was forced by D.J. Moore in the first quarter and intercepted an Aaron Rodgers pass in the third period.
“Defensively, we needed an effort like that to find some success going into the playoffs,” said linebacker Lance Briggs. “We’ve got to take the positives out of this game.”
Positives were harder to find on the offensive side of the ball, though Matt Forte was a clear cut choice after rushing for 91 yards on 15 carries and catching a team-high eight passes for 60 yards. In the process, Forte became only the second Bears player to compile more than 1,000 yards rushing and 500 yards receiving in a season, joining Hall of Famer Walter Payton.
Under pressure from frequent blitzes, Jay Cutler completed 21 of 39 passes for 168 yards with two interceptions and a 43.5 passer rating. He was sacked six times and managed to complete only one pass for 16 yards to Devin Hester and none to Johnny Knox despite targeting the starting receivers 13 times.
“They kept us out of sync,” Cutler said. “We didn’t change a lot from last game to this game and I think they did a really good job of taking away some of our ‘hots,’ keeping us off balance. They were delaying some of their blitzes and then bringing those guys. I think there was a stretch where [Charles] Woodson came about every snap toward the end of the game.”
The Bears took a 3-0 lead on Robbie Gould’s 30-yard field goal with 4:31 left in the first half and had a chance to widen the margin after Tillman’s 42-yard interception return to the Green Bay 15 on the Packers’ first play from scrimmage of the second half.
But three plays later, Cutler was hit as he threw and his wobbly pass intended for Knox in the left corner of the end zone was intercepted by safety Charlie Peprah.
Mason Crosby’s 23-yard field goal tied the game 3-3 with 2:39 left in the third quarter. Green Bay had first-and-goal at the 1, but had to settle for the kick after John Kuhn was stopped for no gain, Brandon Jackson lost two yards and Rodgers was sacked by Tommie Harris.
Rodgers’ 1-yard TD pass to tight end Donald Lee eventually gave the Packers a 10-3 lead with 12:42 remaining in the fourth quarter. On the two plays preceding the score, Rodgers completed passes of 20 yards to Driver and 46 yards to Greg Jennings.
After being held to minus-six yards on 17 plays over five possessions, the Bears offense marched from their own 2 to the Green Bay 32. But Cutler’s overthrown pass intended for Hester was intercepted by safety Nick Collins at the 11, icing the game with :10 to play.
“We’d like to have a couple throws back,” Smith said. “But I thought Jay played hard like the rest of our football team. He’s done a great job this year of leading us to 11 wins so far.”
Knowing they’re only three victories away from winning the Super Bowl, the Bears left Green Bay determined to take advantage of their playoff bye just as they did with their week off during the regular season.
“We started off the season 4-3 and then came out of that bye and rattled off five [wins] in a row,” Olsen said. “If we do that again, we’re Super Bowl champs.”
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