Inbox: They all own a special place in this rivalry's tremendous history

Tom from Keota, IA

Dear Packers: Whew. Sincerely, Everyone

That was the most maddening performance and the most improbable victory all wrapped up in one.

Grant from Grand Forks, ND

It took a lot of leaf mulching after the game to go from crabby to happy. Kind of weird, there was no instant elation when they blocked the field goal.

I was caught between relieved and shocked.

Ryan from Chippewa Falls, WI

"Blocked. Packers block it. GB wins. Wow. I gotta go." Great sign off, and an amazing game! Is that more than one for Karl Brooks now?

Yes, he had one as a rookie last year vs. Minnesota. The amazing stat, though, was in Wes’s story that it was the first time in 85 years the Packers blocked a field goal to win a game.

Dave from Waterford, OH

Add this last-second kick to the list of Bears vs. Packers games that ended with a blocked field goal. Who can forget the Chester Marcol rushing touchdown after his field goal attempt was blocked? I was at Lambeau in 1999, the game at which they honored Favre for breaking the quarterback consecutive start streak (Jaworski) and the first game after Walter Payton had passed, where the Bears blocked the last-second chip shot to win the game. If I recall, the final score was 16-14.

I was standing on the Lambeau sideline for Bryan Robinson's "Hand of Walter" moment 25 years ago. Marcol, Robinson, Brooks … they all own a special place in this rivalry's tremendous history.

Justin from Los Angeles, CA

Too much of an exaggeration to say Karl Brooks' fingertip saved Green Bay's shot at a division title?

Not at all, but I'm not even thinking about the NFC North right now. I'm just grateful the Packers are 7-3 and looking for them to start playing better. They will have to. The NFC as a whole is too competitive.

Jeff from Mesa, AZ

Mike, on the blocked field goal, both Packer DTs lined up across from the guards, not covering the center, but once the ball was snapped both penetrated the "A" gaps making contact with the center. How does the rule work protecting the center? The broadcast announcers completely ignored this issue.

The A gaps are not off limits. My understanding is head-on contact with the long snapper is prohibited, but attacking that gap from the outside is not.

Kendra from Boise, ID

Can we talk about what a gift the Bears' clock management was at the end of the game? Ball's on the Packers 30 with 35 seconds left, first-and-10, with one timeout. They opted for a low-risk short run, then let the clock run down to :03 before calling their last time out. Hindsight is always 20/20, and Santos is a decent kicker, but had they been more aggressive by throwing on first (and possibly second and third) down, you make the kick easier and less likely to be blocked. Regardless, GO PACK!

I don't blame the Bears for handling the situation the way they did. To keep throwing the ball, the risk of a sack or penalty pushing you out of FG range is too great. Once you get there, you can't screw it up. If anything, they could've called their last timeout to run the ball one more time to get a tad closer, and then spike it on third down. But that's nitpicking.

Steve from Bradenton, FL

So, after the bye week the Packers improved in one area, penalties. Nothing else based on the stats and more importantly the eye test. The offense struggles in the red zone and the defense cannot get off the field. No?

The Bears had the top red-zone defense in the league coming in, but I still thought the Packers flat-out hurt themselves there more than anything. The GB defense was probably most disappointing, though. Third-and-19 is close to the best situation a defense could ask for to close out a game and it couldn't do it. Emblematic of the day, the way the Bears kept digging themselves out of poor field position, moving the chains and owning the clock.

Tony from Merrill, WI

Thankful for the W. With that said, is it me or does this offense lack identity and rhythm? Especially in the red zone. Add a few questionable calls and you have today's outcome.

This offense continues to show the ability to make the explosive play. It's a scary unit that can strike from anywhere. But it also isn't maximizing on those explosive plays. Start cashing in more often and the point totals will rise in a hurry.

Thomas from Cedar Rapids, IA

Dear coach, next time TAKE THE DAM POINTS! Does anyone know what he was thinking? Was it a vote of no confidence in the defense? If so, that's understandable albeit a bad message to send. Just a real head scratcher. We dodged a bullet but we will certainly take it. A win is a win, right?

LaFleur said afterward it was a game of limited possessions and he wasn't sure when they'd get the ball back again. I was stunned he didn't kick the field goal there and said so at the time in the live blog. I'll let that stand.

Bill from Bloomfield Hills, MI

Let's recap: An under .500 opponent on the ropes, no takeaways, one turnover that was a 14-point swing, lowest TOP for season by far at under 24 minutes, lowest possession count too at seven, not only no three-and-outs for defense but the Bears averaged TEN plays per possession. Yes, a win is what counts due to one dude's timely effort. Please help me understand how this game shows progress versus regression?

I don't think it does. It felt like the defense was on its heels for the last three quarters of the game, and the offense continues to get in its own way when scoring chances are as good as they get. The law of averages is against this team right now when it comes to close games. I thought the Packers should've taken command of this game in the second quarter, which I believe would've made things feel very different. That's why I focused on that in my Rapid Reaction piece.

Amanda from New York, NY

I feel like recycling last Monday's headline would be apropos for today.

I had to look it up to remind myself. "No apologies for winning in this league," prompted by the Chiefs staying undefeated (at the time) with a blocked field goal. There are no coincidences in the universe.

Chris from West Allis, WI

I'll be very curious to hear if there are more negative II submissions after this win than after the loss to the Vikings. If I've learned anything from this column (and you two have done level your best to make it so) it's to never apologize for a win. Go Pack Go!

Oh, never. No way. But I'll also be honest, there's just not a lot to feel good about from this game, except for the play of Christian Watson and Josh Jacobs. I loved the way those two balled out, but the offense needs to take advantage of big-time production like that much better than it did.

Eric from Skokie, IL

Not trying to sound like a pessimist but I think we need to see more games where JL10 doesn't throw any INTs. I'm not saying that we should cut the guy but I would like to see a game where his INT number for the game is zero! Until then, I think GB is at least one or two years away from becoming Super Bowl-caliber again! Your thoughts, Mike or Wes?

That interception didn't bother me as much as some of his others. He wasn't careless with the ball or trying to force anything. He just made a bad throw. That happens, and the Bears had a defender in the right spot. That situation went from second-and-1 to third-and-long and LaFleur blamed himself for not running Jacobs, which put his QB in a tough spot.

Pete from Caledonia, MI

No apologies. 7-3 is 7-3. The part that's maddening is getting zero pressure w/the front four and then playing a soft zone behind it. A lot of nickel and dime comps for Evan Williams. Hafley preaches aggression but, on third-and-19, in a high-pressure situation, they fall into coverage vs. a rookie QB. Am I off base or did it all seem like throwing stuff against a wall with no idea what would work?

The Packers didn't defend Williams making plays with his legs in the first half, and it felt like the inability to contain that threat threw the whole unit off-kilter the rest of the game. On third-and-19, Kingsley Enagbare has another sack and Williams got away. That play has to be made. The coverage was forced to hold up for too long. The hurry-up on fourth-and-3 seemed to work in Chicago's favor, and I thought Williams and Odunze made a whale of a back-shoulder throw and catch there.

Scott from Green Bay, WI

Can I still be a part of the II crowd if I feel a little bad for the Bears?

I won't ban you. They are two plays that are executed properly around 85-90% of the time from being 6-4 and instead they're 4-6. I say it all the time, this league is nuts.

Reed from Myrtle Beach, SC

Wondering how you would describe the Bears' fans reaction afterward in one word?

Seriously?

FYI, the rest of the column is follow-up questions I worked on before the game.

Jonathan from St. Joseph, MO

Mike, the question that needs to be answered on officiating is, are the officials allowed to use their judgment on throwing a flag? We know they are graded for each game and the better officials get playoff games. So is the grading on officiating according to principle or are they graded on calling penalties by the letter of the law? Do we even know?

I don't, and I don't know if anyone does other than those involved in the process. Your point is a salient one.

James from Augusta, WI

I have to disagree with your assessment that if a QB fakes running out of bounds to gain more yardage should be flagged. Receivers and running backs do it all the time, and once a QB gets past the line of scrimmage, he is nothing more than another ball carrier. The NFL is a game of tomfoolery. Take away one part of it and you might as well take away all of it.

"Once a QB gets past the line of scrimmage, he is nothing more than another ball carrier"? Really? That's not the NFL I watch.

Tom from Indianapolis, IN

So the league saw the video, levied a fine, watched the same video again, then rescinded the fine? And we want refs to get it all right on the field the first time?

Also salient.

David from Hilliard, OH

Ohio State was playing Northwestern at Wrigley Field in Chicago. I love it when iconic stadiums are used for different sports. I know the Bears played at Wrigley in the past. Do you think the Bears and Packers would ever match up again at Wrigley? Seems like a great ticket to me!

I think that would be outstanding but I have no idea if it'll ever happen.

Dan from Highland, UT

I noticed one of the team charters flew to O'Hare and the other to Midway. Why the difference in airports?

Mystery to me. In all my years traveling with the team, I don't ever recall such an arrangement. We flew back out of different airports last night, too.

Nate from Naples, FL

Who had "Wes quoting Bukowski" on their BINGO card?

That was a rather popular item, judging from the responses that rolled in Saturday.

Megan from Quincy, IL

I really wanted to see the Badgers knock Oregon off their high horse.

Many did, me included. I really would've liked to see how that game might've finished without the phantom chop block call on UW that swung the fourth quarter.

Matt from Middleton, WI

I thought there were a lot of penalties in the NFL (National Flag League). Then I watched the Arizona/Wisconsin basketball game.

A combined 63 fouls and 87 free throws. If anything ever deserved a "Mercy," that game was it.

Mark from Ada, OK

The Jaguars and Packers being the only two teams with a daily Inbox made me think, "Wow! Vic must've been a good boss." The ability to leave an impact like that is truly impressive. Insiders, what's your best Vic story?

My best is my last one. We were flying back from Arizona in the middle of the night after the OT playoff loss in '15 (Jan. '16), which was the last NFL game Vic covered. He had announced he was stepping away after that season, and I had taken his seat nametag when I left the press box to give him later as a commemoration. Anyway, we were headed toward an absolutely nasty storm whose north-to-south front was so massive the pilot had no way to get around it. So he told us all he was going straight through it and it would be really rough. At one point, we slammed into something so hard it felt like we might've hit a mountain, except we were all looking at each other with ashen faces realizing we were still flying. Everyone took the deepest collective breath possible. Then Vic turned to me and said, "Well, I guess this really is it, Mikey!" Classic Vic.

Patrick from Charlotte, NC

Good news, the Packers officially have an identity this season. It's the title of a song released by Bon Jovi in 1986.

Livin' on a prayer? I'll go with Aerosmith circa 1993. Livin' on the edge. Happy Monday.