On Nov. 30, the morning after a 41-25 loss to the Packers, coach Matt Nagy was still seething about the Bears’ defensive performance. He detailed their ineffectiveness on the Packers’ first three possessions, all of which ended in touchdowns. Take away a kneel-down at the end of the first half, and the Packers scored five touchdowns on their first six drives. Of their first 36 plays, 22 went for five yards or more.
“That’s not who our defense is,” Nagy said.
He was wrong. It’s precisely what the Bears’ defense has become.
That game was the start of a precipitous defensive decline that hasn’t been rectified entering the Bears’ wild-card playoff game Sunday against the Saints.