Welcome to Packers-Bears Week.
This may be the most important regular-season game of the Matt LaFleur Era in Green Bay.
No, it wasn’t easy for this team down in Tampa, Fla., against an UDFA rookie quarterback but the Packers managed to win, 17-14, to even their record to 2-2.
Meanwhile, it hasn’t mattered who Ben Johnson has at quarterback. He was handpicked to save this franchise and has managed to keep this Bears offense rollin’ with Case Keenum and Tyson Bagent as Caleb Williams recovers from a hamstring injury.
Over the weekend, we published a two-parter on LaFleur. Subscribers can read in full.
A few days after the Packers inexplicably lost to the Chicago Bears in the 2025 Wild Card round — wounds still fresh, memories still sharp — I chatted with sources inside the building. One coach in particular broke everything down in painstaking detail.
Looking back, this game truly did pan a magnifying glass over LaFleur himself. This night highlighted everything that makes him a great coach and, of course, those shortcomings. Green Bay built a 21-3 lead and could not finish.
Thirteen Seconds ultimately doomed Sean McDermott in Western New York. This game, “21-3,” is currently hovering over LaFleur like a dark cloud. All parties involved will remember all moments for a very long time.
There are plays you know. But, as you’ll read below, there’s a few moments you probably missed.
LaFleur and the Packers have a chance to exact a measure of revenge Sunday at Lambeau Field.
The best way to understand the ludicrous nature of this playoff loss at Soldier Field is by gauging how comfortable coaches felt about Matt LaFleur’s job status before this 31-27 defeat versus after.
Up to kickoff? This felt like a done deal. Of course president Ed Policy would stick with both his head coach and GM. Continuity reigns supreme in Wisconsin. Upheaval is for everyone else. On the team website, Policy offered both individuals a strong vote of confidence by stating how “proud” he was of this team for persevering “through a litany of injuries and a very challenging schedule.”
But then the Packers suffered a heartbreaker nobody will ever forget.
Playoff losses this grisly get people fired all the time.
“Doubt,” one assistant admits, “obviously crept in.”
What happened on the shores of Lake Michigan? Let’s dive deep.
There are essentially three prisms in which you can view this disaster and we’ll take ‘em one by one: Player Error, Coaching Malpractice & No Killer Instinct.
Player Error.
The simplest fix.
If one of a dozen or so plays go their way, the Packers likely win.
So many forgotten moments will be lost in time.