Chicago’s worst enemy helps the Bears officially clinch the playoffs

RC Nazemi

•
Chicago’s worst enemy helps the Bears officially clinch the playoffs image

Credit: Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

On Saturday night, the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers gave NFL fans one of the best games of the season.

The two bitter divisional rivals battled until the very end, and even that wasn't enough as the game eventually went into overtime. 

Between recovering an onside kick, scoring the TD in regulation to go into OT, and the bomb Caleb Williams dropped to DJ Moore, the Bears proved why they're the most clutch team in NFL history. 

More: Are the Bears the most clutch team in NFL history? The numbers say yes.

This win, while helping them retain the division lead and giving them a 74% chance to win the division, did not officially clinch it for them. 

Chicago can win out the rest of the way to secure the NFC North title and clinch a playoff birth, but instead, arguably the city's greatest enemy secured the playoffs for them. 

Aaron Rodgers' victory over Detroit Lions clinches playoff birth for Bears

For years and years, Aaron Rodgers led the Green Bay Packers to win after win against the Bears. He racked up so many wins that he felt comfortable claiming himself to be the 'owner' of the franchise. 

Rodgers has since bounced around a bit and finds himself now with the Pittsburgh Steelers. On Sunday, he and the Steelers faced the Lions in Detroit with a chance to secure a playoff birth for Chicago by defeating the Motor City. 

That's exactly what they did. 

The Chicago Bears are officially playoff-bound for the first time since 2020. 

Even though, by and large, the sentiment around Rodgers is poor among Chicagoans, today, he's not a villain. Just a helpful hand looking out for his old friends, the Bears. 

More NFL News: 

News Correspondent