Tracy Porter is the rotten egg. The fly in the punch bowl. A true spoiler.
The veteran Bears cornerback picked a perfect time for his first interception of the season and in the process became Titletown’s party pooper on Thanksgiving.
With the Packers at midfield driving for the go-ahead score late in the fourth quarter, Aaron Rodgers threw a slant right to Porter. It was the slice of pie in a defensive performance so good it made you want to recline and loosen your belt.
This group of prospects and unheralded veterans held Rodgers and the Packers down in a 17-13 win, ruining for the locals a festive night on which former star quarterbacks Brett Favre and Bart Starr were honored.
“You’re coming in feeling like a homecoming game with them doing the extra things with Brett Favre and whatnot, but our mindset was to come in and win,” Porter said. “That’s what we did.”
It wasn’t easy, of course. Beating the Packers hasn’t been for a long, long time, as Thursday night’s fanfare reminded everyone who has followed this rivalry.
But a season after coming up to Lambeau Field and losing its dignity, the Bears defense made its latest argument for respectability under coordinator Vic Fangio.
Rodgers’ one touchdown pass was five fewer than he had in the first half of the Packers’ 55-14 annihilation on Nov. 9, 2014.
“We won this game early in the week in practice … with our preparation,” Porter said.
This one came down to the final minute even after Porter’s interception. The Packers gained possession at their 20 with 2 minutes, 45 seconds remaining and drove to the Bears 8 with 51 seconds left. They called for four straight passes, and four straight times the defense held.
Porter put a gold star on his night on third-and-goal by slapping down a lob to James Jones in the end zone. On fourth down, Rodgers rolled right to extend the play. He fired for Davante Adams, but rookie Bryce Callahan contested the throw, which sailed through the back of the end zone.
“We’ve got a tough group physically and mentally,” safety Chris Prosinski said. “We all had confidence we were going to stop them.”
Prosinski was one of the heroes. The backup safety, filling in for the injured Antrel Rolle, caught running back Eddie Lacy from behind and forced a fumble in the second quarter. Outside linebacker Lamarr Houston fell on the loose ball, and nine plays later, the Bears turned it into a Zach Miller touchdown catch.
“That’s something we study,” Prosinski said. “Those power runners, when they fight for extra yardage, sometimes the first thing that gets sloppy is the ball security.”
Porter, though, led the lockdown. About an hour after the Lambeau Field faithful honored quarterbacks of yesteryear, he made sure the Bears would be the ones celebrating after the lights were turned out.
Adams ran an in-cutting route, with Porter backed up and his eyes on the receiver. Adams, however, ran into another Bears defender as he broke in. It appeared to be intentional, as though he were the obstruction on a route combination. Rodgers, however, didn’t see it that way and let the ball fly.
“I just did a good job of reading my keys,” Porter said. “I was able to beat him to the ball.”
Inside the buzzing visitors locker room, he was the life of the party.
Twitter @Rich_Campbell
