Green Bay Packers v Minnesota Vikings / Brace Hemmelgarn/GettyImages

In a year where the Green Bay Packers were expected to grow and mature, they instead stumbled through a frustrating season finale, falling to the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field. The 24-22 loss was a fitting end to a campaign marred by inconsistency and unforced errors.

Yes, the Packers improved their win total by two games from last season, but progress on paper doesn’t erase the weekly parade of mental lapses and missed opportunities. Heading into the playoffs on a two-game skid, Green Bay has more questions than answers, and the margin for error is razor-thin as they prepare for a Wild Card clash on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Here are five Packers on thin ice heading into the playoffs after a disappointing loss to the Chicago Bears.

Rich Bisaccia

The Packers’ special teams were supposed to be a solved problem when Rich Bisaccia arrived in 2022. His reputation as one of the NFL’s best special teams coordinators came with high expectations for a unit that had long been a thorn in Green Bay’s side.

Yet three years later, the issues remain stubbornly the same, and Sunday’s loss to the Bears felt like a microcosm of the frustration.

The Bears pulled off one of the oldest tricks in the book on a punt return, and the Packers fell for it hook, line, and sinker. DJ Moore feigned catching the punt on the left side of the field, luring nearly the entire Packers coverage unit to him. Meanwhile, Josh Blackwell caught the actual punt on the opposite side at the six-yard line and waltzed untouched into the end zone.

Later, long-snapper Matt Orzech sent a snap high and wide of punter Daniel Whelan. To his credit, Whelan salvaged the play, getting off a 35-yard punt, but it was yet another unforced error that highlighted the unit’s lack of reliability.

For three years, Bisaccia has been tasked with turning around Green Bay’s special teams, and for three years, the gains have been minimal. With the playoffs on the horizon, these mistakes loom even larger. One miscue in a high-stakes game could cost the Packers dearly, and the patience for Bisaccia’s tenure may be running out.

Christian Watson

Christian Watson makes this list for reasons that have nothing to do with performance. In the second quarter of the Packers’ season finale against the Bears, Watson went down with a non-contact injury that immediately silenced Lambeau Field.

Running a routine route, Watson suddenly crumpled to the ground and clutched his knee in visible pain. Trainers rushed onto the field and helped him to the sidelines, where he entered the blue medical tent. Moments later, the situation worsened: the cart arrived to take him back to the locker room, Watson covering his face with his hand as the reality of the moment seemed to sink in.

The injury looked serious, and with the playoffs looming, the Packers are almost certainly preparing for life without their speedy wide receiver. The hope now is that the injury doesn’t cost Watson significant time next season as well.

Watson had been dealing with a knee issue leading up to this game, but it was his opposite leg that gave out. His willingness to play despite not being 100 percent speaks volumes about his dedication to the team. He’s a player who leaves everything on the field, and his absence will be deeply felt.

With Watson on the field, Green Bay’s offense is a different animal. His speed and ability to stretch defenses force opponents to account for him on every snap, creating space for the Packers’ other playmakers. Without him, the Packers’ passing attack loses a significant dimension, and the challenge of moving the ball becomes exponentially harder.

Now, the Packers must regroup and prepare for the playoffs without one of their most dynamic offensive weapons. Watson’s injury casts a shadow over their postseason hopes, and the team will have to dig deep to fill the void left by his absence.

Jordan Love

Four plays after Christian Watson went down, the Packers suffered another scare when quarterback Jordan Love exited the game with an injury. Fortunately, the news on Love is far more optimistic. He was seen throwing on the sideline and head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed postgame that Love will be ready for the Wild Card matchup against the Eagles.

But health isn’t the only concern surrounding Love as Green Bay enters the postseason. His performance, especially in the lead-up to the playoffs, has been underwhelming.

In a quarter and a half of work against the Bears, Love completed seven of 12 passes for just 69 yards (not nice), averaging a pedestrian 5.8 yards per attempt. That lack of explosiveness is emblematic of the Packers’ struggles on offense this season.

Unlike last year, when Love caught fire late in the season and entered the playoffs on a high, this year’s version has been inconsistent and underwhelming.

Love’s first season as the unquestioned franchise quarterback was supposed to be a continuation of his breakout in 2023. Instead, his performance has plateaued—or worse, regressed. The Packers’ offense has battled inconsistency all season, and Love’s inability to deliver consistently big plays has been a key factor.

Now the stakes couldn’t be higher. Love isn’t paid to be middling anymore. As the second-highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, he carries the expectation of elevating his team when it matters most. A deep playoff run isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s the standard he’s expected to meet.

The Eagles’ defense will be an enormous test, and Love’s ability to rise to the occasion will define not only the Packers’ postseason but also the narrative around his season. Can he reignite the spark he showed a year ago, or will inconsistency continue to plague him? For Green Bay’s sake, Love needs to flip the switch—and fast.

Jayden Reed

Jayden Reed’s second season started with all the promise in the world.

Through the first nine games, Reed looked like a budding star, racking up 36 catches for 620 yards and three touchdowns while adding another score on the ground. His versatility made him a focal point in Matt LaFleur’s offense, lining up in the backfield, in the slot, and out wide to create mismatches.

But the second half of the season has been a different story, and Sunday’s loss to the Bears only reinforced the troubling trend.

Against Chicago, Reed managed just two receptions for 48 yards, and his performance was marred by a costly fumble on an end-around play. The Bears capitalized, scoring a touchdown three plays later—a momentum-shifting moment in a game the Packers needed to win. It marked Reed’s third lost fumble of the season, a concerning habit for a player counted on to make big plays, not costly mistakes.

Reed’s overall production has dropped off dramatically in the back half of the season. After surpassing 50 receiving yards in six of his first nine games, he did so just once in the final eight. Over that stretch, he caught only 19 passes for 237 yards, becoming a shadow of the dynamic playmaker he was early on.

Perhaps even more concerning is his reliability as a receiver. Reed has dropped 16 percent of his targets this season, a glaring issue that wasn’t part of his profile coming out of Michigan State.

The Packers need the first-half version of Reed to show up in the playoffs. Without Watson, Reed has a chance to reclaim his role as a difference-maker and prove his early-season brilliance wasn’t a flash in the pan.

Matt LaFleur

Let’s make one thing clear: Matt LaFleur’s job is not in jeopardy. Since arriving in Green Bay, he’s consistently exceeded expectations, blending innovative play design with a knack for getting the most out of his roster. His offensive schemes, in particular, are among the NFL’s best, filled with layered concepts that keep defenses on their heels.

But even great coaches have their flaws, and LaFleur’s have a way of surfacing at the worst possible times.

Sunday’s loss to the Bears provided another painful example of his ongoing struggles with clock management. With 4:28 remaining, the Packers trailed by two points but held all three timeouts. Instead of using them to preserve as much time as possible for a potential game-winning drive, LaFleur let the Bears bleed the clock all the way to the two-minute warning.

This was the moment to act, yet LaFleur’s inaction put his team in a tighter spot.

Luck bailed him out—briefly. DJ Moore fumbled a quick wide receiver screen, and the Packers recovered, giving them new life. But LaFleur’s mismanagement continued.

On the ensuing drive, the Packers played conservatively, understandable given the stakes. What wasn’t understandable was burning a timeout with 58 seconds remaining before a critical fourth-and-four. He could’ve let the clock tick down even further, limiting the time Chicago had to mount a comeback.

The Bears did use that extra time to march down the field after Brandon McManus drilled a 55-yard field goal. Chicago ultimately sealed the game with a walk-off field goal, a result that might have been avoided with better clock usage.

LaFleur’s game management is a recurring issue that hasn’t improved over his tenure. His reluctance to use timeouts at optimal moments or manipulate the clock to his team’s advantage is a glaring weakness for a coach whose other strengths are so evident.

With the playoffs looming, LaFleur must clean up this area of his coaching. The margin for error shrinks in January, and decisions like these can cost teams seasons.

For Green Bay to reach its full potential, LaFleur’s tactical brilliance must extend beyond the X’s and O’s and into the game’s finer details. Until then, the Packers will remain a team capable of brilliance but too often undone by avoidable mistakes.