Just when fans of the Green Bay Packers thought the team couldn't sink any deeper, the ground gave way Sunday.

The unbearable nightmare of losing to Chicago came true yesterday when a blocked Ryan Longwell field goal with no time left in the game ended what could have been another last-second comeback for the Packers.

Nobody was as surprised as Brett Favre, the up and down Packer quarterback who led his team 73 yards in the final three minutes to set up the potential game winning field goal.

"I think everyone in the place thought we'd make it. I figured I'd be in here saying, ‘Hey, it was another great come- from-behind win,' " Favre was quoted as saying in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Instead of staying just one game behind the Central Division leading Detroit Lions, the Packers fell into a three-way tie for second place with Minnesota and Tampa Bay, all with 4-4 records.

"I am angry and I should be angry. This is one that got away from us. When you're in position to win and you don't get it done, it kills," Packer head coach Ray Rhodes said after the loss.

Not only did the Bears break a 10 game losing streak to the Packers with the win, but they also gave Green Bay it's second straight loss at home, something that hasn't been seen since Lindy Infante's swan song season in 1991.

If the Packers weren't embarrassed after losing big to former head coach Mike Holmgren and his Seattle Seahawks last Monday, they certainly should have been ashamed of this loss to the Bears, another struggling NFC Central Division team that was playing with its third-string quarterback.

Even more disappointing was the Packers' run defense and their inability to run the ball on offense.

The Bears exposed the Packer defense during the second series of the game when Curtis Enis, Rod Milburn, and James Allen slashed and pounded for most of the team's yards en route to the first touchdown of the game, a 49-yard jaunt by Milburn.

While many on the Chicago sideline wanted to credit the late, great Walter Payton with helping the team to victory Sunday, it was clear the Packer defense was simply uninspired.

Despite picking off three passes and having another one called back after a penalty, the Packer defense allowed the Bears 24th ranked rushing offense to dominate.

After the Packers drove deep into Bear territory on their second possession of the game and came away with a 30-yard Longwell field goal, the Bears came right back with their running game. Enis ran 11 yards off the left side, Allen hit for 10 yards, and then Milburn scooted for another 10 to the Packer 49 yard line.
Quarterback Jim Miller threw two incompletions before Chicago surprised everyone, especially the Packer defense, by handing off to Milburn on a third down play. He ran through a huge hole untouched all the way to the end zone to give Chicago a 7-3 lead.

The weirdest series of plays then ensued. At the start of the second quarter the Packers had gotten one first down, but had to punt when the drive stalled. The Bears took over at their own 18 yard line and on the second play of their drive, Miller was intercepted by Packer rookie cornerback Mike McKenzie at the 30 yard line.

When the Packer offense took over Favre hit Antonio Freeman for 18 yards over the middle and Levens ran another seven yards to move the ball inside the five yard line, but Marco Rivera was called for holding, moving the ball back to the eight.

That's when Favre made his most costly mistake of the game. He threw into coverage in the end zone and was picked off.

After the Bear offense took over Packer safety Darren Sharper intercepted Miller on the very next play, but that pick was nullified because of a penalty.

The Bear drive died and their kick pinned the Packers back at their own two- yard line.

Another promising Packer drive was thwarted when, on third and five, Favre hit Freeman in full stride on a quick slant that could have gone all the way, but Freeman dropped the pass, forcing a punt.

Sharper again picked Miller off on the Bears next possession and the Packers drove 49 yards, capping it with a touchdown pass from Favre to Tyrone Davis. The scoring pass right before halftime, gave Green Bay a 10-7 advantage.

The second half turned out to be one of the most bizarre of the season. It included an instant replay challenge that overturned an official's call on the field - a challenge that killed a promising Packer drive that could have turned the game in their favor; it included three pass interference calls, players catching the ball out of bounds after forgetting where they were, and it included two missed chip shot field goals - with the last one being Longwell's last- second attempt.

After the Bears scored their final touchdown of the game late in the third quarter to take a 14-10 lead, the Packers again drove deep into Bear territory early in the fourth, but had to settle for a 26-yard Longwell field goal with 11:06 left to cut the Bear lead to just one point, 14-13.

Using their running game to their advantage again, the Bears ran five minutes off the clock before Chris Boniol attempted and missed a field goal, leaving the door open for the Packers.

The Bears stopped Green Bay on three plays on their next possession, but when the Bears got the ball back with five minutes in the game, the Packers also came up with the big plays to force the Bears to punt.

That's when Favre led the Packers on the 73-yard drive for another apparent game-saving effort.

The drive was aided by two pass interference calls against the Bears, the final one coming with 41 seconds left in the game on a third and four play.

When Favre ran a quarterback sneak up the middle, it set up Longwell for the ill- fated game winning kick.

"It was a good hold and a good kick and it felt like our rhythm was fine," Longwell said after the game. "I know we had a little trouble with the PAT (point after touchdown) but we got that up. That was as low as I've kicked it and that got through."

The loss leaves Green Bay fighting to stay above the .500 mark for the first time this late in the year since 1994 and has left it's fans and coaching staff frustrated and angry.

Dallas will host the Packers next week in a game that will pit two teams who are only shadows of the squads which domi nated the 1990s.

"I'm the first one to say I've got to get it cranked up a little bit some kind of way. Where do we go from here? We've got to regroup and get ready to go fight. This one right here is as ugly as it gets for me. It's a game we should win and didn't win. This is a much, much better football team. We're better than we're playing right now. I have to do whatever is necessary to get it back where it should be," Packer head coach Ray Rhodes said after the loss.