As the Green Bay Packers prepare for their massive clash against the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field in Week 18, there are many nerves for both sides of the matchup. While the Bears have been eliminated from the playoffs due to the Packers’ win over the Minnesota Vikings yesterday, they would love nothing more than to avenge their Week 1 loss and eliminate the Packers.
For Green Bay, finding a way into the playoffs with this young team would be very valuable experience. Jordan Love and company have worked hard to scrape their way back into this position and coming up short would be devastating.
While the most obvious scenario for the Packers to get into the playoffs would be to take care of business and beat the Bears on Sunday, there are other avenues as well to get into the dance.
Green Bay Packers’ Full Week 18 Playoff Scenarios, Revealed
As we mentioned, the first path into the playoffs is to simply beat the Bears. That would clinch a spot in the playoffs for Green Bay. After that, there are a few much more difficult avenues to get in.
Andy Herman of the Packaday Podcast has helped explain all of the potential playoff scenarios for Green Bay.
#Packers official playoff scenarios for Sunday: pic.twitter.com/DIa6uwm4Xs
— Andy Herman (@AndyHermanNFL) January 1, 2024
Needless to say, the stress levels of not winning are massive for the Green Bay Packers. More than likely, if they were to lose to the Bears, they would miss the playoffs.
Green Bay cannot afford to take the Bears lightly either. Chicago is fresh off of a 37-17 beatdown of the Atlanta Falcons in Week 17. Justin Fields is playing with a fire lit under him due to the trade rumors he has been facing and the rest of the team is playing for pride.
Much like the Detroit Lions, who eliminated the Packers from playoff contention in Week 18 in the exact same situation last year, the Bears have absolutely no pressure and nothing to lose.
The Green Bay Packers will need to play a nearly perfect game. They have the talent to win and should win. However, the game still must be played and fans are going to have near heart attack level heart rates on Sunday afternoon.
