The Chicago Bears eked out a 19-17 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in a defensive battle that included 12 punts between the two teams. After missing a 45-yard field goal wide left with just over eight minutes left that could have put the game away, Chicago kicker Cairo Santos nailed a 48-yard attempt as time expired for the game winner.
The Bears improved to 7-3 this season and have won three in a row, while the Vikings have lost four of their past five games, dropping to 4-6 this year.
Here are my takeaways:
1. The Bears are getting used to being a first-place team
Santos’ clutch kick keeps Chicago at the top of the NFC North standings in Ben Johnson’s first season. While the games have not always been pretty, Johnson has instilled confidence in his group, which has translated to winning football at the end of games.
The Bears are 5-1 in one-score games this season after going 3-7 in such games last year. Chicago did not turn the ball over on Sunday and has just six turnovers on the year, tied for fourth-best in the NFL.
2. J.J. McCarthy off the mark again, and Vikings fans let him hear it
McCarthy struggled to consistently move Minnesota’s offense, completing just 16 of 32 passes for 150 yards, with a touchdown and two interceptions for a 47.7 passer rating. McCarthy wasn’t helped by two dropped passes by receiver Jordan Addison.
As he has done in other games this season, McCarthy did play well with the game on the line, going 5-of-5 for 55 yards, including a 16-yard touchdown pass to Addison to put the Vikings up 17-16 with 50 seconds left.
Through the first three quarters, however, McCarthy missed badly on a handful of plays that could have been big gains. Boos cascaded down on McCarthy, who’s now 2-3 as the starter, from fans at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings’ playoff hopes are slipping away, and head coach Kevin O’Connell must be seriously questioning the decision to move on from Sam Darnold last offseason.
3. Opportunistic defense leads the way for Chicago
Entering Sunday’s contest, the Bears led the league with 20 turnovers, and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s unit kept the momentum going, forcing two McCarthy interceptions.
With 3:45 left in the first half, Kevin Byard baited McCarthy into a bad throw trying to push the ball down the field to Addison, the veteran safety’s league-leading fifth interception of the season. Cornerback Nahshon Wright corralled the second one just before the half. Minnesota’s defense held Chicago’s offense to just three points after the takeaways, but the Bears are 5-0 when they force at least two turnovers.
4. Caleb Williams makes Minnesota’s blitz-heavy defense pay
Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores blitzed Chicago’s offense 66.7% of the time. But offensive guru Ben Johnson had an answer to the persistent pressure — letting his quarterback use his mobility to escape.
Williams consistently wiggled out of trouble to make plays down the field. Per Next Gen Stats, Williams completed 11 of 21 passes for 121 yards and was sacked just once when Minnesota blitzed. He also had 26 rushing yards.
Running backs D’Andre Swift and rookie Kyle Monangai also helped negate Minnesota’s pressure by combining for 113 rushing yards (Swift 90, Monangai 23).
4 ½. What’s next?
Winners of five of their past six games, the Bears host the Pittsburgh Steelers at Soldier Field in Week 12. Chicago could be facing backup quarterback Mason Rudolph instead of four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers, who suffered a left wrist injury and had to leave Pittsburgh’s game against the Bengals on Sunday.
The Vikings and McCarthy look to rebound with a tough NFC North matchup on the road against the Green Bay Packers. The Vikings have won three of their past four games against Green Bay.
Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on X at @eric_d_williams.
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