How many blunders did Matt LaFleur make today that culminated in a regular season finale loss to their arch-nemesis Chicago Bears? That final second defeat in Green Bay didn’t just end the Packers’ 11-game winning streak over the Bears. It also handed them the No.7 seed out of the NFC and a wild-card match-up against the NFC East Champions, the Eagles. Besides how embarrassing the loss was to the NFC North bottom-dwellers Bears. The Packers’ head coach’s last-minute blunder took the game away from Green Bay’s hands.

Let’s break it down for you what happened. 58 seconds remained in the clock when the Packers found themselves deeply rooted at the Bears 37-yard line. So they needed to make a decision: either go for a pair of fourth downs or kick a 55-yard field goal. However, before Matt LaFleur decided that kicking the field goal would be a better option. He ended up burning the team’s first team out, which came back to haunt him.

Now, Brandon McManus did manage to score the 55-yard field goal that brought the Packers a slim 22-21 lead with 54 seconds to go. However, the game wasn’t finished there. As the Bears pounced on the given opportunity and finished the game by kicking a 51-yard field goal. That effort by Cairo Santos meant the Bears snatched Green Bay’s game from their jaws of victory. And subjected LaFleur to contemplate on clock mismanagement, “That’s on me … I wish I wouldn’t have taken that timeout.”

There goes one costly mistake made by the Packers head coach. His other was probably the decision to start Jordan Love in the first place. Like the Packers had already clinched the playoffs. They could have just rested Love, but they didn’t, and now they have to bear the possible consequences.

Matt LaFleur offers a positive update on Jordan Love’s injury

Considering how Jordan Love’s season had been up until week 18. You can only blame his poor luck and, of course, LaFleur for even taking chances on his starting QB. During the second quarter, Love found himself out of the game because of a right elbow injury. It came on the back of a freak play where he appeared to have hit one of his O-line member’s helmets. When Love went out, the Packers were trailing the Bears by 14-3. However, his backup, QB Malik Willis, did his task superbly on the same drive where Love was injured. He found Tucker Kraft for a 20-yard pass that pushed the Green Bay closer to the Bears’ red zone.

And Josh Jacobs capped off the drive with a 9-yard rushing TD. Now, here’s the thing. Love did come out in the third quarter and was captured warming up on the sidelines. But LaFleur opted for a precautionary measure and decided not to risk him anymore. As the Packers head coach on post-game pressures said, Love “was good to go back in.” However, he didn’t, as Jordan Love ended his game, completing just 7 of his 12 passes for 69 yards.

While his backup, Malik Willis, completed 10 of 13 passes for 136 yards, and to break it down for you, none of them were enough. So, the only positive for the Packers will be Jordan Love’s injury, ain’t that much of a worry. As the Packers QB himself said after the game, “Yes,” when asked about his availability in Green Bay’s wild-card game against the Phillies.