Packers meltdown in Chicago: Mistakes of many varieties in overtime loss

Football coaches often talk about playing "complementary football." Well, Saturday night's epic meltdown by the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field required incredible lapses by all three phases. This was complementary football of a much different sort.

The Packers led 16-6 with five minutes to go and had a chance to one, get a stop on 3rd-and-20 up 10 points, and two, recover an onside kick with under two minutes to go up seven. Accomplishing either would have allowed the bruised and battered Packers to exit Chicago with a season-altering victory. Instead, Matt LaFleur's team made mistake after mistake in the game's biggest moments late, and the Bears mounted a memorable rally and produced a shocking win.

"Unfortunately, some of those plays late in the game didn't go our way," LaFleur said post game. "Too many errors in critical moments that got us beat."

Here's how the Packers had one mistake of many different varieties in the fourth quarter or overtime of Saturday's defeat at Soldier Field:

One final red zone failure: The Packers completed an 0-for-5 night scoring touchdowns in the red zone by settling for a 28-yard field goal with 5:03 left. A touchdown would have put the Packers up 20-6. Instead, the Bears stayed alive, down only 10.

One penalty: On 3rd-and-20 following a holding penalty, Packers rookie Warren Brinson sacked Caleb Williams back in Bears territory. The problem? He brought Williams down by his facemask. The 15-yard penalty allowed the Bears to kick a field goal and trim the lead to 16-9.

One gigantic special teams mistake: Recover the onside kick with just under two minutes to go and the game would have been, for all intents and purposes, over. But Romeo Doubs hesitated, took his eye off the ball and dropped the onside kick, and the Bears recovered. Game on.

One coverage bust: Despite everything, the Packers had a chance to end the game on 4th-and-4 from the 6-yard line. Jeff Hafley brought a zero blitz, Nate Hobbs and Keisean Nixon both covered the same receiver and Williams found Jahdae Walker for a 6-yard touchdown under intense pressure. The Bears kicked the extra point and tied the game with 24 seconds left.

One sack: It would have taken something special for Malik Willis to get the Packers into field goal range with only 17 seconds to go and the ball at the 27-yard line. But any chance to get a couple of chunk plays ended with Montez Sweat sacked Willis, ending regulation.

One snapping mistake: On 4th-and-1 from inside the Bears' 40-yard line to start overtime, Malik Willis and Sean Rhyan weren't on the same page on the snap and the fumbled ball resulted in a turnover on downs. A conversion would have given the Packers a real chance to go score and put the pressure on the Bears. The turnover on downs gave the Bears the football at the 36-yard line.

One game-ending bomb: Jeff Hafley sent another zero blitz and D.J. Moore ran past Keisean Nixon's single coverage, resulting in a game-ending 46-yard touchdown pass. Nixon's coverage wasn't terrible, but Caleb Williams' throw was perfect and Moore made a terrific catch. Game over.

"It does hurt," LaFleur said. "That's the reality of it. It should hurt. All of us, we put a lot into this thing. You have opportunities, up two scores, late in the game, and unfortunately, it flipped pretty quick."

The unbelievable finish to Packers-Bears:

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers meltdown in Chicago: Mistakes of many varieties in overtime loss