Chicago Bears Score and Recap (Week 12): Bears 12, Vikings 10 – Bears Defense Drags Offense to Victory on Monday Night in Minnesota
The Bears and Vikings played about the ugliest football game you will ever see Monday night in Minneapolis. The two squads combined for six turnovers and just a single touchdown but Chicago was able to win behind four field goals, possibly saving Coach Matt Eberflus from being fired.
The Bears got the opening kickoff and drove into Vikings territory before Cairo Santos missed a 48-yard field goal attempt. Justin Fields led a second drive into the red zone and Santos converted a 25-yard kick to put the road team ahead 3-0.
Replacement quarterback Joshua Dobbs had a very rough game throwing two interceptions in the first half. Chicago failed to take advantage of the mistakes and Minnesota eventually tied the game right before halftime with their own field-goal.
The Vikings turned the ball over on downs in their first drive of the second half and the Bears converted a 55-yard Santos boot to take the lead. Dobbs then threw another pick and Santos doubled the margin to 9-3.
After Kyler Gordon took home Chicago’s fourth interception of the game, Fields and the offense moved deep into Minnesota territory. Unfortunately, for the road team, their quarterback fumbled the ball and the Vikings recovered.
Minnesota’s offense clicked for the only time all night and went on a 77-yard march for the go-ahead touchdown on a Dobbs pass to tight end T.J. Hockenson halfway through the 4th quarter. The Bears QB fumbled again on their next possession but the defense held and they got the ball back down 10-9 with just over two minutes left.
After offensive coordinator Luke Getsy dinked and dunked on screen passes and swing passes all night long he finally allowed his quarterback to take a shot down the field. Sure enough, Justin Fields hooked up with D.J. Moore for a 36-yard completion to put the Bears into prime field goal range. Santos made the 30-yard chip shot with just 10 seconds left and Chicago got the ugly victory 12-10. (Box score)
Why the Bears Won
The defense completely dominated Vikings quarterback Joshua Dobbs keeping their team in the game despite not scoring any touchdowns. Santos also did a good job making his kicks after missing the first one.
Key Moment
After Fields’ second fumble Minnesota only needed one more first down to run out the clock. The Bears defense stepped up one last time to force a three and out and get the ball back for the eventual game-winning drive..
Stats That Matter
- Fields threw almost exclusively check-downs for most of the game before his final deep throw at the end. He had 217 yards in the air and 59 more on the ground with no touchdowns and two fumbles.
- D.J. Moore was basically the Bears entire offense on Monday with 11 catches for 114 yards. A vast majority of his receptions came on wide receiver screens behind the line of scrimmage.
- Chicago has created eight turnovers the last two games but have not converted them into points nearly enough. Since 2014, NFL teams are now 65-1 when intercepting four or more passes in a game.
Bottom Line
The Bears were able to overcome another badly coached game to pull out the win. If they hadn’t gone ahead on that final drive it’s very possible Matt Eberflus gets fired going into the bye week. Getsy’s unbelievably conservative play calling is doing Fields no favors as he tries to keep the starting quarterback job. Even with the win the problems with this coaching staff are obvious and something is going to have to change at some point.
Next Up
Chicago is off next week before hosting the Detroit Lions Sunday, December 10.
