Walk into any bar in Titletown right now and you'll hear the same thing. Complete disbelief. Honestly, nobody saw that collapse coming after the way things started at Soldier Field last Saturday night. The Green Bay Packers halftime score of 21–3 felt like a "game over" moment for most fans watching the NFC Wild Card matchup against the Chicago Bears.
Jordan Love was playing like a man possessed in those first 30 minutes. He was surgical. Three possessions, three touchdowns. Basically, the Packers looked like the team that started the season 5–1–1, not the one that crawled into the playoffs on the back of a four-game losing streak.
But then the third quarter happened. Or rather, it didn't happen for the Packers.
Breaking Down the 21–3 Halftime Score
If you look at the box score from January 10, 2026, it’s hard to reconcile the first half with the final result. The Packers dominated. Jordan Love threw touchdown passes to three different receivers before the bands even took the field for the halftime show.
- Christian Watson caught a 7-yard strike to cap an 85-yard opening drive.
- Jayden Reed hauled in an 18-yarder.
- Romeo Doubs finished off the first-half onslaught with a 1-yard toss.
At that point, the Bears looked broken. Caleb Williams was struggling under pressure, and the Chicago offense could only muster a single 27-yard field goal from Cairo Santos. Green Bay had 21 points on the board, and the Chicago faithful were booing their own team into the locker room.
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The vibes were immaculate for Green Bay. But football is a 60-minute game, and the second half turned into a nightmare that'll haunt Matt LaFleur’s staff all off-season.
The Second-Half Vanishing Act
What changed? Basically everything. The Packers' offense, which looked unstoppable during the first two quarters, went into a shell. They punted on their first four drives of the second half. That's not just a slump; that’s a total system failure.
Josh Jacobs, who was grinding out yards effectively early on, found absolutely zero running room after the break. He finished with 19 carries for just 55 yards. Most of those came when the sun was still up. When the Bears' defense adjusted, the Packers didn't have an answer.
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Chicago chipped away. A field goal here, a D'Andre Swift touchdown run there. By the time the fourth quarter rolled around, that 18-point cushion had shrunk to 21–16.
The Matthew Golden Moment
There was a brief glimmer of hope. Rookie wideout Matthew Golden—who's been a bright spot in a weird season—caught a screen pass and took it 23 yards for his first career NFL touchdown.
It put the Packers up 27–16 with about six and a half minutes left. You'd think that would be enough. But Brandon McManus missed the PAT. That single point ended up being massive, as it kept the lead at 11 instead of 12, changing the math for the entire final stretch.
Why the Green Bay Packers Halftime Score Led to a Loss
People are going to point fingers at the defense, but this was a team-wide meltdown. The special teams gave up long returns. The offense went cold. And the defense, missing All-Pro Micah Parsons (who tore his ACL back in December against Denver), just couldn't get a stop when it mattered.
Caleb Williams, the Bears' young QB, grew up right in front of everyone's eyes. He led two late touchdown drives, including the go-ahead 25-yard pass to DJ Moore with under two minutes left.
The Packers actually had a chance at the end. Love moved them down to the Chicago 28-yard line. But a false start penalty and a couple of desperate heaves into the end zone fell incomplete as the clock hit zero. Final score: Bears 31, Packers 27.
Looking Toward the 2026 Season
This loss marks the end of a bizarre year for Green Bay. They finish 9–8–1 overall. It’s the first time since 2010 that they've lost a playoff game to the Bears, and it's officially the largest blown lead in the franchise’s postseason history.
The roster is talented, but the depth is thin. Losing Parsons was clearly the turning point for the 2025 campaign. Before his injury, the defense was top-ten. After it? They lost five straight games to end the season.
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The schedule for 2026 is already out. Green Bay will be playing the NFC South and the AFC East. That means trips to New Orleans, Tampa Bay, and a visit to the New York Jets are on the horizon.
Actionable Takeaways for the Off-Season
If the Packers want to avoid another second-half collapse like the one we just witnessed, the front office has a few specific holes to plug:
- Address the Kicking Situation: Brandon McManus’s missed PAT and a missed 44-yard field goal were backbreakers. Expect a heavy competition in training camp.
- Edge Rusher Depth: You can't rely solely on one superstar. When Micah Parsons went down, the pass rush disappeared. They need a high-end rotational piece in the draft.
- Offensive Consistency: Matt LaFleur has to look at why the play-calling gets stagnant when they have a lead. Sitting on a 21-3 halftime score cost them a trip to the Divisional Round.
The "Jordan Love era" is clearly in full swing, and his 323-yard, 4-TD performance shows he’s the guy. But as we saw on Saturday, a great quarterback can't always overcome a total team collapse.