The Chicago Bears were able to upset the Minnesota Vikings 12-10. The game records indicated that the outcome was much more surprising, but Minnesota was only a three-point favorite, and it made sense in the end, as the game was a legitimate toss-up until the very end.
So, while the Bears did get their fourth win of the season, there are still some serious issues that need to be addressed over the final five games.
5. The Chicago Bears should still have questions about Matt Eberflus
The Chicago Bears cannot walk away from this win and think that Matt Eberflus is equipped to lead this team into 2024 and beyond. This was a game where it looked pretty clear that the biggest advantage Minnesota had was the coaching.
The Bears' defense was healthier, their quarterback was more well-regarded, and their offensive line was starting to come along. However, this team could not get out of their own way.
The Bears missed a field goal early. They won the turnover battle four-to-two, and they had a turnover on downs as well. However, they trailed 7-3 in points off of turnovers and 7-6 if you include the turnover on downs as a fifth turnover.
The Bears had 76 penalty yards on seven penalties. A pass interference kept Minnesota in the game and led to their first field goal. The Vikings had just three penalties for 24 yards.
There was a difference between which team had the better scheme, but the big difference was how buttoned up each team was. The Bears won the game because they had better players, not because of Matt Eberflus. Despite his first division win, the team needs to see a lot more over the final five games to trust him moving forward.
4. The Chicago Bears had poor playcalling against the Minnesota Vikings
Drink if the Chicago Bears throw a screen. That is one way to turn Monday Night Football into a Tuesday hangover. To be fair, there is a reason Luke Getsy did what he did on Monday. Justin Fields struggles to read defenses as it is, and Brian Flores mixes it up more than anyone.
In an effort to protect the quarterback, Luke Getsy decided to run a ton of screen passes, which got the ball out of his quarterback's hands quickly. The issue is that it worked early, but once the Vikings realized it was coming and they adjusted, Getsy had nothing.
Getsy has never been a fit for Justin Fields, and it almost feels like he was hired to coach the quarterback who would come in after Justin Fields. He has slowly embraced using his legs, and when he did on the final drive, it led to big points. Justin Fields had four rushes, equaling 59 of his rushing yards. They were four different runs of 10 yards or more, and they came on all four field goal drives. Roschon Johnson was humming in both the pass and run games but finished with 15 touches, and he hardly saw the ball late. Khalil Herbert hardly saw the ball at all. The Bears got away from what they do too often and Luke Getsy was outcoached by Brian Flores in a bad way.
The big plays by D.J. Moore and Justin Fields bailed out a weak game plan.
3. The Chicago Bears do not have enough answers on Justin Fields
Justin Fields did big things on the ground. As we noted, all four field goal drives featured rushes of 10 yards or more, and almost all of his production came on those drives. Still, as a passer and runner, there are areas where Fields can improve.
He averaged just 5.9 yards per attempt. He looked frantic in the pocket. As we noted, it actually did make sense for Getsy to make things simple for him because the blitzes started to overwhelm him.
Justin Fields finally had a game-winning drive. It came because he fumbled in the red zone, which led to the Bears giving up the lead. Then, he fumbled in his first attempt to come back. The Vikings sat on the ball after his turnover or the Bears would have lost another game without Fields having that second chance to win the game.
Justin Fields is now 2-6 as a starter, and if you take away the Vikings game, where he left early, he is still 2-5. He took three sacks and had two game-changing fumbles. Justin Fields still has five more games, but tonight was not the night that Fields proved he is the man to trust.
2. The Chicago Bears still have not won a statement game
The Chicago Bears have four wins, but the main reason they have not done enough to ensure returns for Matt Eberflus, Luke Getsy, or Justin Fields is that the team does not have a statement win. They put up 40 points on Washington before a lot of other teams did, and Washington already fired their defensive coordinator.
The Bears beat the Las Vegas Raiders, and the Raiders fired their head coach shortly after. One of the big reasons was because the Raiders started Brian Hoyer. The Bears beat Bryce Young, who looks like a supreme bust. The Panthers fired most of their offensive staff as well as their head coach.
The Minnesota Vikings will be the first team that the Bears beat that does not see a play-caller get fired within the next few weeks. However, this Vikings team is on their third quarterback, someone they traded for about a month ago, and a team that was without Justin Jefferson, Jordan Hicks, Dean Lowry, Marcus Davenport, and Akayleb Evans. Do we keep going? This is not the roster that had the record they did. They were winning with magic because of Joshua Dobbs, and at one point, it wore off.
So, the Bears have five more games to prove themselves. Winning by two against Joshua Dobbs when he threw four interceptions and threw short of the sticks once on fourth down is not impressive enough to change opinions.
1. The Chicago Bears' receiver depth is still weak
D.J. Moore has been everything that the Chicago Bears wanted and needed. The only thing he has not done that many expected him to do was make the rest of the room better. When you look at the pass catchers this week, you see D.J. Moor leading the way with 11 catches for 114 yards.
Then, it was Cole Kmet, a tight end, followed by Roschon Johnson, a running back. The fourth leading receiver was running back Khalil Herbert. Then, down there with six yards was Darnell Mooney.
Tyler Scott is losing his job to Equanimeous St. Brown. St. Brown just plays because he can block on screen passes. Trent Taylor plays because Velus Jones is not trusted, either. The Bears receivers are not good enough beyond D.J. Moore.
If anything, this is the reason the Bears will keep D.J. Moore. An offensive weapon with the Panthers pick like Marvin Harrison may turn Fields into the weapon we thought he could be. Where they stand right now, they need help.