When the Chicago Bears take on the Minnesota Vikings, it will be a great chance for some of the notable core pieces of the roster to show what they can bring to the team moving forward. The Vikings are sitting at 6-5 and have some talented pieces that will be a challenge. Which players on the Bears will be tested the most?
3. The Chicago Bears pass rush will be in for a challenge
The Chicago Bears went out of their way to improve their pass rush. They waited until August to add Yannick Ngakoue and added Montez Sweat during the season, but between the two, they have a formidable duo.
This week will be a major test for both, though. Ngakoue has been disappointing all season, and this week, he gets Christian Darrisaw, who is the number one graded left tackle in the NFL, per PFF. Their grades are not everything, but the tape does agree that he is in the top five at worst.
On the flip side, Montez Sweat will get Brian O’Neill. O’Neill has been just as reliable as his teammate, although he grades out closer to the top ten than the top three. Still, Sweat will not go from Ryan Ramczyk to Taylor Moton, then Penei Sewell, and now Brian O’Neill. All four are in the top ten amongst right tackles when it comes to pass protection. Easier days are hard, but it is also good to see that he has still played well despite being on a new team and having some tough matchups.
This may actually be an easier matchup than last week for Sweat, who just had to face Penei Sewell. Either way, it is a tough opponent who will give us a lot of information about how good Sweat can be with the Chicago Bears going forward.
2. The Chicago Bears rookie tackle will see another talented name
You can tell that rookie right tackle Darnell Wright is not completely healthy right now. He battled through injury against Maxx Crosby in week seven, but since then, his play has dropped pretty dramatically.
There is plenty of reason for this. He has been an ironman playing through injuries and has had plenty of tough matchups. He will get another one with Danielle Hunter on Monday.
When the Vikings played the Bears earlier in the season, Wright survived against Hunter, mainly because the Vikings leaned on stunts and twists and switching things up inside. When Hunter saw Wright one-on-one, he had his wins.
Still, Wright had his wins as well. If there are positives to say about Wright, it is that he is battle-tested and has not given up. He fought hard against Aidan Hutchinson before giving up a sack at the very end. Cameron Jordan, Maxx Crosby, Joey Bosa, and Montez Sweat join Hunter as the names he has faced in the past seven weeks.
Can Wright hold off for one more game until the bye week gives him a chance to re-group, or does Hunter break the rookie who is already on the edge after a long season?
1. The Chicago Bears rookie will be tested by the Minnesota Vikings rookie
Rookie Tyrique Stevenson is coming off of the best game of his career. To be fair, the Lions are not a team stacked with outside receivers when you consider Amon-Ra St. Brown is primarily a slot, and the duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta are their next pass catchers.
So, we will see if Stevenson is getting better or just saw a good matchup on Sunday against the Vikings. It does not sound like Justin Jefferson is going to play so the Bears will be seeing a lot of Jordan Addison. Beyond Addison is Brandon Powell and KJ Osborn, who can be contained. If they can keep Addison in check, things should go well.
The Vikings do a great job of moving Addison around and getting him in key matchups. He is averaging 2.29 yards since Jefferson is gone, although that has dropped to 1.88 with Joshua Dobbs. Addison only had 28 yards against Chicago the last time they played, although he did have a touchdown against Tyrique Stevenson. How do the two rookies look against each other in round two?