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Bear Digest

Five Ways Sunday's Week 2 Game with Vikings Is Critical for the Bears

There's plenty at stake for both the Bears and Vikings Sunday at Soldier Field, including first in the NFC North, even though it's only a Week 2 game.
Gene Chamberlain|
Vikings running back Aaron Jones hauls in a touchdown pass against the Bears in last year's opener at Soldier Field.
Vikings running back Aaron Jones hauls in a touchdown pass against the Bears in last year's opener at Soldier Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Chicago Bears

For Week 2 games, Sunday's between the Bears and Vikings at Soldier Field carries major significance.

Normally a team could look at a game only a week into the season, and treat it like any other game, especially after winning big in the opener.

In this case the Bears need to approach it like a little more is at stake. Maybe everything.

It goes beyond being a good opponent and the Ben Johnson-Brian Flores battle or Caleb Williams trying to battle a confusing, blitzing defense.

Here's why Sunday's Week 2 game with the Vikings is huge for the Bears.

Bears and Vikings: Who Wins and Why for Week 2

1. NFC North

It's not just a chance to beat an NFC North opponent. The Bears want to start out fast in the NFC North and against the Vikings because their divisional record has not been good, including last year when they won it.

In winning the division last year they accomplished a rarity. They took the title despite a losing (2-4) record within the division. In fact, they haven't had a winning record in any season for NFC North play since 2019. Taking the North and not giving it back, as GM Ryan Poles so famously said, is going to be nearly impossible for a second straight year without a .500 record or better within the division. Normally a division winner needs the best division record or at least second best.

This one also means taking sole possession of first place in the division. Every other team in the division will have at least one loss after Sunday, unless there is a tie.

2. Home field

No team wants to feel like an opponent owns them on their own field. The Bears suffered this embarrassing situation with the Packers and Aaron Rodgers, but flipped
the script last year by winning twice at home over the Packers, once in the regular season.
However, the Vikings have become the team the Bears have problems with at home now. The Bears last beat Minnesota at home in that 2019 season, 16-6, with Chase Daniels at quarterback. Johnson's career in Chicago even started with a home-field, come-from-ahead 27-24 loss to the Vikings.

3. Big Mo

A two-game winning streak for the Bears would be ideal but they would also take away the building momentum by the Vikings. Minnesota finished last year by winning five straight and then started this year with a win. The Vikings would obviously become the problem for the Bears in the NFC North should the Minnesota streak hit seven.

4. The season's start

The idea for the Bears is to come out of the first four games no worse than 3-1 and possibly 4-0. The win last year set them up to make this happen, and with a strong Eagles team coming to Soldier Field looking to avenge last year's loss on Black Friday. The Bears close the first "quarter" of the season, if there is a quarter in a 17-game slate, by playing the Jets. The Vikings game could be the difference between 3-1 or 4-0 and a disappointing 2-2 start, and then the schedule toughens later.

5. Handling success

Bouncing back from defeat is critical, so, too, is knowing how to handle an impressive, lopsided win like the Bears had last week. As Johnson said, they haven't put up any points this week, and last week is old news by now. The really good teams come back strong off their big wins, just like they do after a disappointing defeat.

"You win and you're sky high, you lose and you stink, and so we just try to stay as static inside of the building as we possibly can," Johhson pointed out this week. "We know we made a ton of mistakes in all three phases, we're looking to clean those up, we're looking to get better each and every week."

Saying this and living up to it after such an easy win won't be easy.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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