The Green Bay Packers fought hard to overcome adversity, just as defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said they would. Ultimately, that counts for nothing if you can't close out the game.
It's about as heartbreaking as any Packers regular-season defeat in recent memory, a game so painfully similar to the NFC title game loss to the Seattle Seahawks a little over a decade ago. The good news is that the Packers' playoff hopes remain strong and they can still win the NFC North, but their margin for error is now razor-thin.
Matt LaFleur must wonder how on earth this one got away from his team, but three players made critical errors at the worst times.
3 Packers who deserve most of the blame after suffering heartbreaking loss to Bears
Keisean Nixon
The Keisean Nixon experiment has simply not worked.
Nixon is a capable backup who occasionally makes a game-changing play, as he did to intercept Caleb Williams and ice the game at Lambeau Field two weeks ago. But the veteran has gone from hero to zero over the past two games with back-to-back nightmare performances.
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He gave up the game-tying and game-losing touchdowns, the first a miscommunication that allowed Jahdae Walker to get wide open in the back corner of the end zone. On the second, DJ Moore outright beat him on a 46-yard score to win the game in overtime.
Nixon almost gave up another big-time play to Olamide Zaccheaus, but the receiver dropped a pass that hit him in the hands.
According to Pro Football Focus, over the past two weeks, Nixon has allowed seven catches on nine targets for 131 yards and three touchdowns, a perfect passer rating of 158.3. It's no coincidence that his performances have declined after Micah Parsons' season-ending injury.
Nixon isn't a CB1. He never was. The Packers rolled the dice, taking him off return duties, where he was an All-Pro, and making him their primary cornerback. They're paying the price now.
Romeo Doubs
It hurts because Romeo Doubs had played such a flawless game before the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter. He caught five passes for 84 yards and a touchdown, but none of that will be remembered.
Doubs had a chance to effectively end the game by safely negotiating the Bears' onside kick. He seemed to hesitate for a split second and then fumbled the recovery. It was an awkward, bouncing kick, but Doubs has to make that play.
It gifted Chicago a free possession, which it used to cash in and tie the game, and we all know what happened in overtime. To make it even more brutal for Doubs, he suffered a wrist injury on the play and didn't return, instead having to watch the Packers' collapse from the sideline.
To his credit, Doubs took full ownership of the defeat with his honest postgame comments. He must now have a short memory, because the Packers will need him over the next two weeks.
Josh Jacobs
Blame might be too strong a word for Josh Jacobs, who fought through a knee injury (again). Early signs indicated the Packers would be without their star running back, but after pushing to play, he gave it everything.
Unfortunately, his red-zone fumble proved costly. With Green Bay leading 6-3 midway through the third quarter, Malik Willis led a masterful drive to take the offense back into scoring range. But on 1st-and-goal from Chicago's 4-yard line, Jacobs lost the ball and handed possession to the Bears.
Green Bay failed to score a touchdown on five red-zone trips, ultimately haunting them late in the game.
Jacobs didn't touch the ball again following his fumble, which was presumably injury-related, although LaFleur's postgame comments added confusion.
Jacobs ran 12 times for 36 hard-fought yards, an average of just 3.0 yards per attempt. It was a gutsy, admirable effort from a leader on this team, but Jacobs didn't look fully healthy, and his turnover hurt the Packers' chances.