The Chicago Bears got a bit of revenge on the division rival Green Bay Packers with their 22-16 overtime win in Week 16.
The victory avenged their 28-21 loss to the Packers just two weeks prior.
After Jordan Love was knocked out of the game after a helmet-to-helmet hit from Bears defensive end Austin Booker — a play that resulted in a $5,818 fine for a blow to the head/neck of a quarterback — Caleb Williams rallied Chicago from a 16-6 deficit with 5:03 in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime.
In the extra period, the Bears defense forced a turnover-on-downs and Williams led a 64-yard touchdown drive to seal the win.
While his late-game heroics were reason for celebration, Williams was also involved in a player earlier in the game that warranted the NFL to hand out some supplemental discipline.
Packers Rookie Fined for Hit on Williams
GettyChicago Bears QB Caleb Williams vs. the Green Bay Packers
During Chicago’s fourth-quarter rally and into overtime, Williams found a groove.
He completed 11 of 20 passes for 145 yards and 2 TDs — a 6-yard pass to Jahdae Walker with 24 seconds left and a 46-yard game-winner to DJ Moore in overtime — and he rushed for 21 yards on two carries.
On the Bears’ next-to-last drive of the fourth quarter, Williams was sacked by Packers rookie defensive end Warren Brinson on a third-and-20. The play was initially a 6-yard loss, but it was negated after Brinson was flagged for a 15-yard penalty after grabbing Williams by the face mask and dragging him to the ground.
The play cost the Packers 15 yards, gave the Bears a first down, and kept their drive alive, resulting in a 43-yard Cairo Santos field goal that cut the deficit to 16-9.
But the bad news for Brinson didn’t stop there. When the NFL revealed its list of weekly fines on Saturday, Brinson’s name was on it. His checkbook is now $4,981 lighter after he was hit with a fine for his facemask infraction on Williams.
Bears Have Path to NFC’s No. 1 Seed
At 11-4 and sitting in first place in the NFC North, the Bears were in great position to win their division entering Week 17.
They sat 1.5 games ahead of the Packers, but after their 41-24 blowout loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday night, Chicago won the division handedly — only its second division crown since 2011 — and the team is still in position to land the No. 1 seed in the NFC for the first time since 2006.
First, the Bears need to win their final two games against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 17 and the Detroit Lions in Week 18. San Francisco is also in a battle to win its division and fight for the conference’s top seed as well.
Chicago will also need the NFC West-leading Seattle Seahawks (12-3) to lose one of their final two games against the NFC South-leading Carolina Panthers in Week 17 and the 49ers in Week 18.
Williams could also make a bit of history over Chicago’s final two games. He’s 600 yards away from becoming the first QB in Bears’ history to throw for 4,000 yards.
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