Bears keep hopes alive
CHICAGO - Robbie Gould kicked a 38-yard field goal with 11:28 left in overtime and the Chicago Bears overcame frigid conditions and the Green Bay Packers for a 20-17 victory last night to stay in the running for the playoffs.
Chicago's Alex Brown blocked Mason Crosby's 38-yard field goal attempt with 18 seconds left in regulation to preserve a 17-17 tie and send the game into overtime.
The temperature at Soldier Field was announced at 2 degrees, making it the coldest home game in Bears history since records started being kept in 1963. The wind chill was 13 below, the second lowest in recorded team annals, so the longtime rivals known for their ability to play in cold weather were tested by the elements.
Kyle Orton hit a 17-yard pass to Greg Olsen and a 15-yard penalty on Green Bay's Aaron
A third-down pass of 14 yards to Matt Forte got it to the Green Bay 20 to set up the winning kick - Gould's second straight in overtime.
The Bears (9-6), who stayed in contention for the NFC North over the weekend when Atlanta beat Minnesota, won their third straight and rallied from a 14-3 halftime deficit to do it.
Green Bay (5-10) dominated the first half, getting two touchdown passes from Aaron Rodgers, but lost its fifth straight after routing the Bears, 37-3, at Lambeau Field in mid-November.
Forte's 3-yard TD with 3:11 left lifted the Bears into a tie. The score came one play after Forte just made a first down on a fourth-and-2 run.
But on the ensuing kickoff, Green Bay's Will Blackmon returned a short kick 32 yards, and a personal foul on Chicago's Adrian Peterson for tackling him out of bounds put the ball on the Bears' 35.
Rogers's 9-yard pass to James Jones gave the Packers a first down at the Bears' 24 with two minutes left.
The Packers ran down the clock behind the running of Ryan Grant, moving to the 20 to set up Crosby, but Brown blocked the kick.
If the Bears win at Houston next Sunday and the Vikings lose at home to the Giants, Chicago captures the NFC North. Minnesota holds the tiebreaker over the Bears, so if both teams win, the Vikings win the division. 