Saturday’s epic Bears-Packers game ranks among 2025’s best

If you thought Saturday’s insane Bears-Packers game was the best game of the year, I don’t blame you.

Turns out, you’re not alone, either.

Chicago and Green Bay’s instant classic in Week 16 has already jumped near the top of NFL.com’s list of 2025’s best games, and it literally just happened three days ago. That’s how intense it was.

“This one had everything you could want: a historic rivalry, prime-time billing, lead changes, onside kick recoveries, gritty off-the-bench performances, toe-tapping touchdown catches, overtime theatrics, playoff implications,” wrote Ali Bhanpuri, who proactively admitted his pro-Bears bias before jumping in.

“Even beyond the NFC North race and the conference standing, this heavyweight battle had real rivalry-altering stakes: Chicago had lost 20 of its previous 23 matchups with Green Bay, including six consecutive at home and a heartbreaker just two weeks earlier. So when the Bears, down seven points with 1:59 remaining on the clock, set up for an onside attempt, Chicago fans could feel the weight of years’ worth of head-to-head losses pressing down on their hopes.

"Then the improbable happened: Josh Blackwell recovered Cairo Santos’ kick, giving the Bears one final chance to tie the game. And with their backs up against the wall, on fourth-and-4 with under 30 seconds to play, they were lifted by a stunning moment: Undrafted rookie Jahdae Walker hauled in the game-tying touchdown (on his second career catch) in the back corner of the end zone. When Chicago took possession of the ball in overtime, facing a sudden-death situation, belief among Bears fans was palpable. This time was going to be different. And it was. On a play that was added to the game plan just days earlier, Caleb Williams ripped a 46-yard dime that cut through the frigid, spiraling air at Soldier Field and landed in DJ Moore’s welcoming arms. One of the best throws of the season. One of the best Bears games of my lifetime. How could this one not make the list?”

And with that, I’m about to watch the whole game all over again, just to bask in the glory. For the 15th time since Saturday. (Just kidding. Or maybe not. You don’t know.)

The reality is that every Bears-Packers game has the potential to be this good off the rivalry alone, and you could feel the energy on the field from the opening kickoff, when D’Marco Jackson over-enthusiastically jumped on top of a pile for a personal foul. But too often, the end result has let people down: not just because the Packers won but because the games themselves weren’t terribly competitive.

But as they have all year, the Bears pulled out a win in the most mind-bending fashion you could imagine, finally combining guts with the talent to pull off the impossible. In doing so, they beat the rivals who have so handily thrashed them for the last three decades or so, proving they’re no longer the perpetual little brother in this matchup.

Suffice it to say, Bears fans are going to be rewatching this one for years to come.

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