For much of Monday night’s matchup between Chicago and Minnesota, the Vikings struggled mightily on offense while the Bears couldn’t take advantage of their takeaways.
But somehow, some way, Chicago got a big play from quarterback Justin Fields when the team needed it most. And that allowed the club to come away with a 12-10 victory.
The Vikings took a 10-9 lead with 5:54 left in the contest after Josh Dobbs led his best drive of the night, tossing a 17-yard touchdown to tight end T.J. Hockenson.
That came after Fields had been strip-sacked for his first giveaway of the evening. Fields had his second on the ensuing drive, fumbling while scrambling up the middle of the field.
But Minnesota couldn’t do anything with the second opportunity, punting it away after a three-and-out.
Starting with the ball on their own 22 with 2:29 on the clock, the Bears were able to get into scoring position on Fields’ best throw of the night. On third-and-10 with 1:06 left, Fields fired a 36-yard strike to D.J. Moore, putting Chicago on Minnesota’s 13.
After a few kneeldowns, Cairo Santos hit a 30-yard field goal to give Chicago a two-point lead with 10 seconds on the clock.
The Vikings had a bunch of laterals on the night’s final play, but it wasn’t nearly enough. The Bears had won their first divisional contest in head coach Matt Eberflus’ tenure.
Fields finished 27-of-37 for 217 yards with no touchdowns and no picks. He rushed 12 times for 59 yards.
Santos missed a field goal, but also hit from 25, 39, and 55 yards in addition to his 30-yard game-winner.
Minnesota quarterback Josh Dobbs had his worst game with the Vikings and arguably his worst game of the season. He finished the game 22-of-32 for 185 yards with a touchdown. But he threw four interceptions — though one went off the hands of Jordan Addison.
The Bears, however, scored just three points off the four takeaways, keeping the Vikings in the game.
Even with the loss, Minnesota is still in the playoff picture as the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/monday-night-football-bears-beat-042529189.html
Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Publish date : 2023-11-28 04:25:29
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