Flores’ defense dominant as Vikings outlast Bears

Chicago set the scene for the league’s most highly anticipated game of the week, as the Bears hosted the Minnesota Vikings, with both NFC North rivals coming off massive wins to open the season. The Bears took down the Carolina Panthers in an offensive masterclass, while 4th quarter heroics from Carson Wentz, Justin Jefferson and the Vikings’ defense were enough to overcome Green Bay.

With starting quarterback Kyler Murray still sidelined after sustaining a concussion in the opening quarter against the Packers, Wentz rightfully got the nod to start, with all eyes on whether he and his star receiver, Jefferson, could do enough to keep up with the electric Chicago offense.

The Vikings offense looked threatening early with a 30-yard completion to Justin Jefferson on the 2nd play of the game hoping to continue the tone set in the 2nd half of their comeback win against the Packers. The Bears defense held strong, something that could not be said for the unit’s opening week performance, holding the Vikings to a 35-yard Will Reichard field goal.

The real chess match of the game between Ben Johnson and Brian Flores began, with the league’s best playcallers on their respective sides of the football being the key to victory. Johnson’s plan to run the football in the rain was made clear early, with Caleb Williams’ ability to to turn bad plays into a positive becoming an early headache for the Vikings defense on the Bears opening drive. Penalties were about the only thing that went wrong with the Bears offense in Week 1, and this issue continued forcing Cairo Santos into a 50-yard field goal. 

Both offenses looked sloppy on the following drives, with a poor snap from Vikings center Blake Brandel leading to a huge loss on 3rd down, followed by a strong defensive stand from the Vikings and a poor throw from Williams causing an interception. The early winner in a matchup of masterminds looked to be Flores, but Dennis Allen’s defensive unit for the Bears held its own, forcing Wentz into uncomfortable positions as the rain continued to pour. 

Savvy veteran Aaron Jones looked strong on the ground without his running mate Jordan Mason who was placed on injured reserve with a thumb injury during the week, helping the Vikings take a 6-3 lead midway through the second quarter. This lead would be maintained into halftime, with a solid Bears offensive drive ruined by their own mistakes, going from the Vikings’ 30-yard line back to their own 45 after four straight penalties, leading to a punt. Big sacks from Austin Booker and Dallas Turner took it into the half, with both offenses looking like shells of themselves from Week 1.

Advantage Brian Flores.

The Bears started with the ball in the second half, and a strong drive on the ground particularly from Kyle Monangai combined with Williams’ superhuman pocket presence got them down to the 1 yard line. But if there’s one thing we know about Brian Flores, he’s always got a trick up his sleeve. Jalen Redmond punched the ball out of the hands of D’Andre Swift on the goal line, and the Vikings recovered.

The defensive slugfest continued, with neither offense looking like getting any continuity in the rain and both defenses making big plays. 

The Bears offense finally looked alive during the 4th quarter, with big plays from Swift and Rome Odunze helping get them to the 6 yard line. But just as it all looked to be coming together, the biggest news story of the game occurred as Williams went down without contact and looked in serious pain, exiting the game. If that didn’t suck all energy out of the crowd, then a huge blocked field goal by Isaiah Rodgers certainly did. 

The Vikings began making plays of their own offensively, leading to a doink field goal by Reichard to give his team a 9-3 lead with a minute left. Backup Tyson Bagent would storm Chicago down to Minnesota’s 12 yard line, but with the game on the line it was emerging superstar Dallas Turner putting the game to bed with a huge sack to seal a dominant defensive Vikings win. 

This win for the Vikings leaves them atop the NFC North with 2 divisional wins to begin the season, and with a relatively easy month ahead, they will look to cement themselves as a contender in the NFC. As for the Bears, they will have to patiently wait on the severity of Williams reported hamstring injury to remain optimistic. The difference in last week’s performance to today’s is staggering, scoring a near-NFL record 56 fewer points than their previous outing, but at least Dennis Allen’s defense looked capable of making plays today.

Touchdowns
Minnesota: N/A
Chicago: N/A

Top Performers
Minnesota: Jones Sr., Redmond, Turner, Rodgers, Thorson
Chicago: Stevenson, Muhammad II, Thieneman, Lynch

Injuries
Minnesota: Ingram-Dawkins (hip)
Chicago: Williams (Hamstring)

Crowd: 58,914 At Soldier Field