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The Chicago Bears came into Sunday's crucial NFC North showdown with renewed hope for a playoff run, but they have the Los Angeles Rams -- not themselves -- to thank for their forthcoming postseason appearance. Despite a methodical start from Mitchell Trubisky, David Montgomery and a steady offensive attack that willed them back into contention down the stretch, the Bears were ultimately no match for Aaron Rodgers' MVP-caliber passing in the first half. Three early touchdowns from No. 12 gave Green Bay a two-score lead, and a handful of Bears miscues -- a fourth-down turnover on downs, a late Trubisky pick, and Matt Nagy's decision to kick field goals on two red-zone trips -- sealed the 35-16 victory for the visiting Packers.
The Bears (8-8) will still be playoff-bound as a wild-card team thanks to the Rams beating the Arizona Cardinals, but it's Green Bay (13-3) that'll be celebrating Sunday even more. With the Packers' win, Rodgers and Co. will enjoy the NFC's only first-round bye in the postseason as the conference's official No. 1 seed.
Here are some immediate takeaways from Green Bay's big win:
Why the Packers won
MVP Aaron Rodgers came to play in the first half. No. 12 wasn't quite as unstoppable in the latter two quarters, throwing a couple of passes that could've been picked, but his aerial assault to open the game was easily the biggest reason Green Bay took care of business. The Bears, even with their solid "D," had no answer for his biggest throws, most notably a 72-yard bomb to Marquez Valdes-Scantling. The defense was also on point when it needed to be, coming up strong on Chicago's late fourth-down tries and capitalizing on some errant Trubisky throws in key spots. A pretty win? Not necessarily. But it speaks volumes that Green Bay can turn in an uneven performance and still drop 35 on a division rival in a game with huge playoff implications.
Why the Bears lost
Stop us if you've heard this before, but they too often took the conservative route when big risks were basically required. Matt Nagy deserves props for dialing up six different fourth-down tries, but somehow he still ended up looking cautious by settling for field goals twice in a game that consistently demanded Chicago get into the end zone to keep pace with Rodgers. The Bears made the methodical approach work enough to stay in it into the fourth, but they needed to be practically perfect in order to actually win the game. Mitchell Trubisky, meanwhile, was solid, if unspectacular, but some of his most important throws near the end zone or late in the game left a lot to be desired. Where was Allen Robinson? David Montgomery's early injury may have slowed him, too.
What this means for the Packers
A whole lot of rest! Only one team in the NFC gets the first round of the playoffs off, and that'll be Green Bay. After that, they'll host the lowest remaining seed in the divisional round. In other words, the Packers are in a great position not only to replicate, but build on, the success of their first year under coach Matt LaFleur.
What this means for the Bears
They're headed to the playoffs, but not exactly in an inspiring way. Anything can happen in the postseason, and you have to give Trubisky and Nagy credit for staying competitive in Sunday's game, which was closer than the score indicates at times. But Chicago will face a tall task right off the bat, with the New Orleans Saints set to square off with them in the wild-card round.
