Vikes Beat the Bears: A Win is a Win Until Nearly a Loss

Vikings Territory Breakdown

The Minnesota Vikings went to weird and wacky Solider Field and eked out a quirky 30-27 victory over the Chicago Bears to improve to 9-2. It was pretty at times and ugly late, but that’s the way of the Vikings in Chicago. They now have five wins in a row at Soldier Field and are coming off a 3-0 road trip, which is a nice bit of momentum for this squad embarking on a three-game homestand to position themselves for the playoffs. 

There was certainly some cause for heartburn (the Vikings defense gave up 11 points in less than two minutes to allow the Bears to force overtime) and handwringing (the offense put up 30 points but it should have been more—a fumble at the one-yard line on the opening drive shifted the momentum early and helped the Bears, a team the Vikings were outplaying for much of the game, to stick around and make backup kicker John Parker Romo to hit a 29-yard field goal in overtime to secure the win. So, soothe your indigestion with some Tums, get ready for Thanksgiving and be happy your team is 9-2 and a game out of the NFC North lead.

There is plenty to pick apart in this one: only two catches by Justin Jefferson; getting off the field on third down; containing a running QB with another coming in next week; and a fumble in the red zone among them. And the fellas at Vikings Territory Breakdown podcast—Joe Oberle, senior writer at vikingsterritory.com and purplePTSD.com and Mark Craig, NFL and Vikings writer for the Star Tribune and startribune.com—are here to nitpick them all. Happy Turkey Day!