This writer had the pleasure to attend the Chicago Bears’ game against the Minnesota Vikings this Sunday at Soldier Field. What could I see from section 124? What was the vibe in the stadium like. What were a few key moments?
People were very anxious to get into the stadium because the first 20,000 people would get a free Bronco Nagurski bobblehead. The bobbleheads were quite cool and a fun collector’s item.
The Bears’ Pro Shop was packed with fans purchasing merchandise and looking at what the store had to offer. The checkout lines moved quickly though and soon a person was able to check out and get out to witness everything that the game had to offer.
Soldier Field is known for its good food and there was plenty of it. We chose a pulled pork sandwich and a boneless rib sandwich for our pre-game meal. Granted they were messy but I survived not getting any sauce on my Gayle Sayers 1936 throwback jersey. That was a big win!
\The crowd in our section was almost completely made up of Bears’ fans with a few Minnesota Vikings fans sprinkled in. One gentleman, who sported a Bears’ hat and a Vikings jersey had my wife and I a little confused. However, after he stood up, we saw that his jersey had “Superbowls” written across the back of it and the number “0” below. So, he was poking fun at the Vikings.
There was no shortage of fan participation for this game. I figured that being it’s a game against a division rival that the crowd would be hyped up for it and they were. When the Vikings were on offense, the crowd was loud. You could tell it was hard for Kirk Cousins to hear. I think that the crowd had a huge, positive effect on the game for the Bears.
When quarterback Mitchell Trubisky went down, I thought that it was a knee injury because of the way he was grabbing at his knee. But it turns out it was a shoulder dislocation. The crowd was wondering what happened to Trubisky and it took some time for us to find out. I also heard many people asking what was going on with Roquan Smith. He wasn’t out on the field at all.
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The biggest thing I took away from seeing the game live was realizing just how good the Bears defense is. They are fast, they are tough and they are great tacklers. They took it to the Vikings and had they pitched a shutout, it would have been an even greater game than it was. But you can’t discount that defense. They are good.
The crowd was loud right up until the end. It was electric.
It was one of the most exciting games that this writer had ever been to.
Quick Hits
Here are a few odds and ends that this writer gathered from the game that might be of some interest to fans.
-Cordarelle Patterson is a big guy, physically! He looks big on television and he looks even bigger in person.
-The Bears’ defense hits hard and wraps up. It seemed like on every play, the Bears would wrap up the runner using several defenders. You can be assured that in that “scrum” the defense is trying to pull the ball out. It worked from time to time but mostly after the whistle.
-The Bears’ defense is one of the best they have had on the field. This year’s defense looks great! They swarm to the ball and make plays. They excel at getting to the quarterback and they cover receivers well. Seeing this defense live got me even more excited about the Bears than I have been in quite some time.
-Khalil Mack is a monster. I am not telling you anything you don’t know. Seeing this guy in person was truly awesome. He is easily the best defender on the team and should be considered to be the best defender in the NFL.
-The look that the Bears were sporting on Sunday was awesome. The jerseys and the rest of the uniform looked good. And what an interesting meaning behind the jerseys and why the Bears wore them.
-Finally, there is no better way to watch a game than watching it in person. You get a sense of the atmosphere and see how fans react. You get to see what happens after the play when the cameras cut away. You can see what happens during a television time out. It’s thrilling!