Bear Digest

Top 10 Bears and Packers finishes supply a legacy of thrills

Listing the top 10 Bears and Packers finishes based on conclusions and consequences, with a possible addition to the group coming Saturday night.
Gene Chamberlain|
Green Bay Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji scores on a pick-6 as Bears QB Caleb Hanie tries for the tackle in the 2010 NFC Championship Game.
Green Bay Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji scores on a pick-6 as Bears QB Caleb Hanie tries for the tackle in the 2010 NFC Championship Game. | Rick Wood via Imagn Content Services, LLC

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Chicago Bears

A longtime Chicago sports fan, Ben Johnson is more apparently more well versed on Cubs history than the team he directs on the field.

The Bears coach wasn't well informed on the playoff history between the Bears and Packers, who battle Saturday night in postseason for only the third time in 213 games.

“I was kind of surprised to see how few times that's happened in the postseason," Johnson sad. "I think it's pretty cool."

The three postseason games all have come in Chicago, including the first one at Wrigley Field just before the U.S. entered World War II, a 33-14 Bears win en route to winning the 1941 NFL title.

"I've been saying since I got here, the vision has always been let's have home playoff games at Soldier Field," Johnson said. "I'm proud of our guys being able to bring that vision to life this year and hopefully we can come out and make our fans proud here this weekend.”

It's the longest-lasting NFL series in terms of games played, and here are the 10 best games ranked according to thrills and chills and significance.

10. Bears 26, Packers 24

Nov. 8, 1987. The Bears still had much of their Super Bowl team intact in Walter Payton's final season. They were locked in a seesaw game with the Packers but Green Bay pulled ahead 21-13 late in the third quarter. This was seven years before they had the two-point conversion. Jim McMahon rallied the Bears. Payton scored on a 1-yard run and Kevin Butler made a 24-yard field goal, but the Packers took the lead with a minute left on Al Del Greco's 47-yard field goal. McMahon piloted the Bears into range and Butler made a 52-yard field goal with four seconds left for the win.

9. Bears 13, Packers 10

On Nov. 3, 1968. The Packers crowed in 1964 after a 52-yard Paul Hornung free kick field goal following a fair catch had given them a 17-3 halftime during a win over the defending NFL champion Bears. Four years later, revenge was a dish served cold and after a fair catch. Gale Sayers ran for a career-high 205 yards and late in the game Packers punter/running back Donny Anderson made a short punt from deep in his own territory. Cecil Turner called a fair catch at the Packers' 43. Bears coach Jim Dooley, a member of George Halas' staff in 1964, remembered Green Bay's free kick four years earlier and used this little-known codicil in the NFL rules that still is in effect. Rather than put the ball in play from scrimmage with 20 seconds left and risk getting a field goal blocked, they chose to line up with the ball held from placement for kicker Mac Percival at the 43, but with no rush allowed. Percival won it with the free kick field goal.

8. Packers 24, Bears 23

Sept. 9, 2018. Matt Nagy's coaching tenure opened with Khalil Mack being unleashed upon the Packers' offense, and Aaron Rodgers suffered a knee injury while Green Bay was stream-rolled 20-0 into the third quarter. However, Rodgers returned, threw TD pass of 39 yards to Geronimo Allison and 12 yards to Davante Adams and eventually hit Randall Cobb with a shorter pass over the middle that was turned into a 75-yard TD in a 24-23 Green Bay win. The Bears bounced back and went on to the NFC North title while Green Bay eventually fired coach Mike McCarthy.

7. Bears 16, Packers 10

Nov. 3, 1985. A few weeks after Mike Ditka used the Refrigerator, William Perry, as a goal-line ball carrier and flattened Packer George Cumby into Gumby, the Bears fought off Green Bay and its dirty tactics to come out with a 9-0 record. The Bears trailed 10-7 in the fourth quarter but the game changed as Steve McMichael sacked Jim Zorn for a safety. Then Payton followed up a 17-yard Jim McMahon pass to Tim Wrightman with a 27-yard breakaway TD run. Someone from Green Bay had left manure in the Bears locker room prior to the game, and fans were using a sledge hammer to hit a refrigerator with the No. 72 on it in the parking lot. Packers Ken Stills and Mark Lee were hit with 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalties for cheap shots in the game earlier to fuel a budding feud between Ditka and Packers coach Forrest Gregg, but the Bears maintained their composure.

6. Packers 12, Bears 6

Sept. 7, 1980, Packers kicker Chester Marcol lined up for a 35-yard game-winning overtime field goal in a tight defensive struggle, and Bears Hall of Fame defensive lineman Alan Page blocked the kick. It bounced straight back hard to Marcol, a Polish immigrant who didn't know much about the sport when he came to the U.S. Marcol took off running around left end and outraced everyone to the end zone for the win. Later, in his biography, Marcol revealed he was addicted to cocaine at the time and had used it in the game.

Marcol wrote: “I had gone into the bathroom at halftime and while the coaches and players were preparing for the second half, I snorted coke. I don’t know if it would be accurate to say I was high when I scored that touchdown two hours later, but I definitely was under the influence."

The Bears got their revenge later that season, annihilating the Packers 61-7 in the worst defeat any team suffered in this series.

5. Packers 14, Bears 13

Nov. 5, 1989, the replay game. On fourth down from the 14, Packers QB Don Majkowski threw a TD pass to Sterling Sharpe but officials flagged the Packers for an illegal forward pass because Majkowksi had the ball in his hand when half his arm had gone past the line of scrimmage. Replay was looked at and they determined it was indisputable evidence that Majkowski was behind the line, and they gave the Packers the TD and the win. However, subsequent footage with a line transposed across the field clearly showed half of Majkowski's arm over the line with the ball still in his hand. Not only had the officials incorrectly used replay because they needed indisputable evidence to overturn the call, but they were entirely wrong about what happened. The rule later was changed and it's not nearly as hard now to determine if someone is over the line. The Bears collapsed shortly after that game, losing six straight, and Ditka's run of five straight division titles came to an end.

4. Bears 14, Packers 13

Nov. 7, 1999, the hand of Walter game. The Bears went with heavy hearts to Lambeau Field after a public memorial service at Soldier Field during the week after Payton had died of the rare liver disease, primary sclerosing cholangitis. They dedicated the game to Payton and seemed on the verge of defeat as Ryan Longwell lined up for a 28-yard field goal. Defensive tackle Bryan Robinson got his hand on the kick and it fell down inside the 5, where Tony Parrish recovered. Dick Jauron's lowly Bears had beaten Brett Favre and the Packers.

“Walter Payton picked me up in the air," Robinson said afterward. "I can't jump this high."


3. Packers 21, Bears 14

Jan. 23, 2011. The 2010 NFC Championship game itself was relatively boring until the late fourth quarter. The Bears were down 14-0 and 21-7 before making a late rally behind rookie backup QB Caleb Hanie, after Jay Cutler's knee injury. B.J. Raji's interception return for a TD had made it 21-7, but Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs both intercepted Aaron Rodgers, and the Bears defense kept it within striking distance. Hanie hit Earl Bennett for a 35-yard TD with 4:43 remaining and the defense got him the ball back. The Bears drove to the Green Bay 27, but Hanie's fourth-and-5 pass intended for Johnny Knox was intercepted by Sam Shields at the 12 with 47 seconds left and the Bears' Super Bowl hopes died. Green Bay then beat Pittsburgh to win the Super Bowl.

2. Packers 33, Bears 28

Dec. 29, 2013. A season-ending game for the NFC North title. On fourth-and-8 from the Bears 48 with 46 seconds left, Rodgers moved around and found Randall Cobb running wide open after Chris Conte blew the coverage. The touchdown pass won the game and division title for the Packers. In the first half, Julius Peppers had sacked Rodgers for a 6-yard loss by knocking the ball out of the Packers QB's hand as he threw. No one picked up the ball, thinking it had been incomplete, and officials didn't blow the play dead because Rodgers had lost control of the ball before moving his arm forward. So, at Rodgers' urging, Jarrett Boykin picked it up and ran 15 yards for a Packers TD. The play wound up making the difference in a game that might rank No. 1, if not for the fact neither team was very good. The Packers won the title at 8-7-1.

1. Bears 22, Packers 16 OT

Dec. 20, 2025. This might have been the most exciting Bears-Packers game in the series and definitely the most exciting finish. There have been only three overtime battles and both teams had good records. The Bears won the last two overtime games. There have been more epic back-and-forth games but this one had the most incredible finish, with a 43-yard Cairo Santos field goal, an onside kick recovered by Josh Blackwell, a 6-yard Caleb Williams TD pass to Jahdae Walker to force OT, and the 46-yard Williams bomb to DJ Moore for the win after Malik Willis had fumbled while on the verge of Packers field goal range. It led to a Bears NFC North title.

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A longtime Chicago sports fan, Ben Johnson is more apparently more well versed on Cubs history than the team he directs on the field.

The Bears coach wasn't well informed on the playoff history between the Bears and Packers, who battle Saturday night in postseason for only the third time in 213 games.

“I was kind of surprised to see how few times that's happened in the postseason," Johnson sad. "I think it's pretty cool."

The three postseason games all have come in Chicago, including the first one at Wrigley Field just before the U.S. entered World War II, a 33-14 Bears win en route to winning the 1941 NFL title.

"I've been saying since I got here, the vision has always been let's have home playoff games at Soldier Field," Johnson said. "I'm proud of our guys being able to bring that vision to life this year and hopefully we can come out and make our fans proud here this weekend.”

It's the longest-lasting NFL series in terms of games played, and here are the 10 best games ranked according to thrills and chills and significance.

10. Bears 26, Packers 24

Nov. 8, 1987. The Bears still had much of their Super Bowl team intact in Walter Payton's final season. They were locked in a seesaw game with the Packers but Green Bay pulled ahead 21-13 late in the third quarter. This was seven years before they had the two-point conversion. Jim McMahon rallied the Bears. Payton scored on a 1-yard run and Kevin Butler made a 24-yard field goal, but the Packers took the lead with a minute left on Al Del Greco's 47-yard field goal. McMahon piloted the Bears into range and Butler made a 52-yard field goal with four seconds left for the win.

9. Bears 13, Packers 10

On Nov. 3, 1968. The Packers crowed in 1964 after a 52-yard Paul Hornung free kick field goal following a fair catch had given them a 17-3 halftime during a win over the defending NFL champion Bears. Four years later, revenge was a dish served cold and after a fair catch. Gale Sayers ran for a career-high 205 yards and late in the game Packers punter/running back Donny Anderson made a short punt from deep in his own territory. Cecil Turner called a fair catch at the Packers' 43. Bears coach Jim Dooley, a member of George Halas' staff in 1964, remembered Green Bay's free kick four years earlier and used this little-known codicil in the NFL rules that still is in effect. Rather than put the ball in play from scrimmage with 20 seconds left and risk getting a field goal blocked, they chose to line up with the ball held from placement for kicker Mac Percival at the 43, but with no rush allowed. Percival won it with the free kick field goal.

8. Packers 24, Bears 23

Sept. 9, 2018. Matt Nagy's coaching tenure opened with Khalil Mack being unleashed upon the Packers' offense, and Aaron Rodgers suffered a knee injury while Green Bay was stream-rolled 20-0 into the third quarter. However, Rodgers returned, threw TD pass of 39 yards to Geronimo Allison and 12 yards to Davante Adams and eventually hit Randall Cobb with a shorter pass over the middle that was turned into a 75-yard TD in a 24-23 Green Bay win. The Bears bounced back and went on to the NFC North title while Green Bay eventually fired coach Mike McCarthy.

7. Bears 16, Packers 10

Nov. 3, 1985. A few weeks after Mike Ditka used the Refrigerator, William Perry, as a goal-line ball carrier and flattened Packer George Cumby into Gumby, the Bears fought off Green Bay and its dirty tactics to come out with a 9-0 record. The Bears trailed 10-7 in the fourth quarter but the game changed as Steve McMichael sacked Jim Zorn for a safety. Then Payton followed up a 17-yard Jim McMahon pass to Tim Wrightman with a 27-yard breakaway TD run. Someone from Green Bay had left manure in the Bears locker room prior to the game, and fans were using a sledge hammer to hit a refrigerator with the No. 72 on it in the parking lot. Packers Ken Stills and Mark Lee were hit with 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalties for cheap shots in the game earlier to fuel a budding feud between Ditka and Packers coach Forrest Gregg, but the Bears maintained their composure.

6. Packers 12, Bears 6

Sept. 7, 1980, Packers kicker Chester Marcol lined up for a 35-yard game-winning overtime field goal in a tight defensive struggle, and Bears Hall of Fame defensive lineman Alan Page blocked the kick. It bounced straight back hard to Marcol, a Polish immigrant who didn't know much about the sport when he came to the U.S. Marcol took off running around left end and outraced everyone to the end zone for the win. Later, in his biography, Marcol revealed he was addicted to cocaine at the time and had used it in the game.

Marcol wrote: “I had gone into the bathroom at halftime and while the coaches and players were preparing for the second half, I snorted coke. I don’t know if it would be accurate to say I was high when I scored that touchdown two hours later, but I definitely was under the influence."

The Bears got their revenge later that season, annihilating the Packers 61-7 in the worst defeat any team suffered in this series.

5. Packers 14, Bears 13

Nov. 5, 1989, the replay game. On fourth down from the 14, Packers QB Don Majkowski threw a TD pass to Sterling Sharpe but officials flagged the Packers for an illegal forward pass because Majkowksi had the ball in his hand when half his arm had gone past the line of scrimmage. Replay was looked at and they determined it was indisputable evidence that Majkowski was behind the line, and they gave the Packers the TD and the win. However, subsequent footage with a line transposed across the field clearly showed half of Majkowski's arm over the line with the ball still in his hand. Not only had the officials incorrectly used replay because they needed indisputable evidence to overturn the call, but they were entirely wrong about what happened. The rule later was changed and it's not nearly as hard now to determine if someone is over the line. The Bears collapsed shortly after that game, losing six straight, and Ditka's run of five straight division titles came to an end.

4. Bears 14, Packers 13

Nov. 7, 1999, the hand of Walter game. The Bears went with heavy hearts to Lambeau Field after a public memorial service at Soldier Field during the week after Payton had died of the rare liver disease, primary sclerosing cholangitis. They dedicated the game to Payton and seemed on the verge of defeat as Ryan Longwell lined up for a 28-yard field goal. Defensive tackle Bryan Robinson got his hand on the kick and it fell down inside the 5, where Tony Parrish recovered. Dick Jauron's lowly Bears had beaten Brett Favre and the Packers.

“Walter Payton picked me up in the air," Robinson said afterward. "I can't jump this high."


3. Packers 21, Bears 14

Jan. 23, 2011. The 2010 NFC Championship game itself was relatively boring until the late fourth quarter. The Bears were down 14-0 and 21-7 before making a late rally behind rookie backup QB Caleb Hanie, after Jay Cutler's knee injury. B.J. Raji's interception return for a TD had made it 21-7, but Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs both intercepted Aaron Rodgers, and the Bears defense kept it within striking distance. Hanie hit Earl Bennett for a 35-yard TD with 4:43 remaining and the defense got him the ball back. The Bears drove to the Green Bay 27, but Hanie's fourth-and-5 pass intended for Johnny Knox was intercepted by Sam Shields at the 12 with 47 seconds left and the Bears' Super Bowl hopes died. Green Bay then beat Pittsburgh to win the Super Bowl.

2. Packers 33, Bears 28

Dec. 29, 2013. A season-ending game for the NFC North title. On fourth-and-8 from the Bears 48 with 46 seconds left, Rodgers moved around and found Randall Cobb running wide open after Chris Conte blew the coverage. The touchdown pass won the game and division title for the Packers. In the first half, Julius Peppers had sacked Rodgers for a 6-yard loss by knocking the ball out of the Packers QB's hand as he threw. No one picked up the ball, thinking it had been incomplete, and officials didn't blow the play dead because Rodgers had lost control of the ball before moving his arm forward. So, at Rodgers' urging, Jarrett Boykin picked it up and ran 15 yards for a Packers TD. The play wound up making the difference in a game that might rank No. 1, if not for the fact neither team was very good. The Packers won the title at 8-7-1.

1. Bears 22, Packers 16 OT

Dec. 20, 2025. This might have been the most exciting Bears-Packers game in the series and definitely the most exciting finish. There have been only three overtime battles and both teams had good records. The Bears won the last two overtime games. There have been more epic back-and-forth games but this one had the most incredible finish, with a 43-yard Cairo Santos field goal, an onside kick recovered by Josh Blackwell, a 6-yard Caleb Williams TD pass to Jahdae Walker to force OT, and the 46-yard Williams bomb to DJ Moore for the win after Malik Willis had fumbled while on the verge of Packers field goal range. It led to a Bears NFC North title.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.