The Chicago Bears made the fans sweat out until the final seconds again as they escaped Minneapolis with a 19-17 win over the Minnesota Vikings. The win improved their record to 7-3, and with the Detroit Lions losing to the Philadelphia Eagles, they sit atop the NFC North. But the game was far from pretty.
The offense started poorly when quarterback Caleb Williams missed badly on his throws on the first two drives, and the Bears gained only two yards. Williams, who finished with 16 of 32 passes for 193 yards, was once again let down by his receivers, who had critical drops, and the offense that had to settle for four field goals.
Unlike their season-opening loss to the same Vikings, the run game played a much bigger role in this game. D’Andre Swift carried 21 times for 90 yards, while rookie Kyle Monangai scored the only Bears touchdown in the second quarter, though he only gained 23 yards on 12 carries.
But as great a play caller as Ben Johnson has been, his insistence on passing in short-yard situations leaves a lot to be desired when the ground game is productive. Such was the situation when the Bears faced third-and-one with 25 seconds left in the first half.
Williams threw an incompletion to Rome Odunze, and they had to punt the ball. Fortunately, the Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy threw two interceptions in the first half, and they were just content on going to halftime rather than going down the field for more points.
As the Bears kept scuffling and settled for a field goal, this game was starting to feel a lot like the Week 1 loss. And sure enough, the Vikings took advantage. Jordan Mason scored a 16-yard touchdown to make it 16-10 with 12:33 left, and McCarthy threw a 16-yard touchdown to Jordan Addison to take a 17-16 lead with 50 seconds left in the game.
But the special teams, which have been much-maligned every week, came up big. Returner Devin Duvernay took the kickoff and returned 56 yards to the Minnesota 40-yard line. After running for three straight plays, Cairo Santos, who had missed a 45-yard field goal previously, redeemed himself with a 48-yarder as time expired.
The Bears showed grit in their win
The win also showed the Bears have come a long way since they lost to the same Vikings team in Week 1. Despite heavy blitzing by the defensive coordinator Brian Flores for most of the game, Williams survived and did not commit any turnovers.
Williams showed no emotion after the game-winning field goal, knowing he needed to play much better. But beating the divisional opponent in their building had to feel good for him and the Bears.
Read more: Ben Johnson is avoiding one critical Bears topic like the plague
To think the Bears lead the NFC North despite a 0-2 start and issues with their offensive execution remains. How soon they can fix it will likely determine whether their postseason dream becomes a reality or they get humbled and receive a rude awakening.