The Chicago Bears dominated the Minnesota Vikings in several areas Monday night (except on the scoreboard) and it looked like it would cost the Bears when the Vikings took the lead late in the fourth quarter. But Justin Fields orchestrated a final drive that resulted in a field goal and a 12-10 Bears victory.
Cairo Santos made four field goals, including the game-winning kick with 10 seconds remaining, to lift the Chicago Bears to a 12-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night in Minneapolis.
Santos’ 30-yard field goal capped off a contest that was defined by aggressive defenses and turnover-prone offenses. Chicago (4-8) earned its first win against an NFC North opponent under coach Matt Eberflus, who entered the game 0-9 against division rivals.
The Bears are the first team to win without scoring a touchdown after teams previously went 0-28, and it was their first win when not scoring a touchdown since 1993.
The Bears (4-8) ended their streak of consecutive NFC North losses at 12 after Fields led the offense on a 10-play, 66-yard drive in the final 2:12 to take the lead for good.
Bears quarterback Justin Fields completed 27 of 37 passes for 217 yards. He rushed 12 times for 59 yards but lost two fumbles in the second half.
Joshua Dobbs threw a career-high four interceptions for Minnesota (6-6). He completed 22 of 32 passes for 185 yards and one touchdown.
The Bears trailed 10-9 when they took over on their own 22-yard line with no timeouts and 2:29 remaining. Fields pushed the ball bear midfield but faced third-and-10 after back-to-back incompletions.
Chicago Bears misfiring game plan
To counter Minnesota’s aggressive blitz, the Bears’ passing game turned horizontal. Fields reached a career high in passes completed at or behind the line of scrimmage (10) by the end of the first half and averaged 0.3 air yards on those completions. The screen game may have felt necessary, but its ineffectiveness cost Chicago several opportunities to score. Perhaps no play illustrated that more than a short pass to DJ Moore on third-and-2 in the third quarter that fell short of the first down. The drive resulted in a 39-yard field goal after the Bears’ offense stalled.
The Vikings lost their second consecutive game in near identical fashion as they did the week before: committing far too many turnovers and leaving an exhausted defense unable to protect a late lead. That formula will haunt the Vikings during their bye week, which they enter with a .500 record (6-6) when it could have easily been 8-4.
Dobbs gave the Vikings some things to think about during their bye. He threw four interceptions, bringing his total to eight turnovers in four games with the Vikings, and is officially 1-2 as the Vikings’ starter. Their win in his debut against the Atlanta Falcons was credited to rookie ,Jaren Hill who started the game. Dobbs has been one of the best NFL stories in years, but he was always an emergency starter, and the Vikings now have their original No. 2 quarterback — Nick Mullens — back healthy. That’s not to suggest the Vikings will or should turn to Mullens post-bye, but they’ll certainly need to work through that possibility during their time away.
Chicago’s offense was stuck in neutral after a game plan that relied heavily on screen passes struggled to capitalize off the extra possessions it received from the Bears’ defense, which came away with four turnovers for a second straight game.
Fields did enough to lead his team to a win, but lingering questions about his long-term viability in Chicago will remain.
Wins are important, but the way Monday’s victory played out leaves the Bears searching for plenty of answers as they head into their bye week.