Vikings at Bears Game Day Capsule Preview

Minnesota Vikings (12-4) at Chicago Bears (3-13)

Kickoff: Noon, Sunday, Soldier Field, Chicago

TV: Fox (Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma, Shannon Spake)

Streaming: fubo TV (Sign up for free trial)

Radio: WBBM AM-780, FM-105.9 (Jeff Joniak, Tom Thayer, Mark Grote)

Spanish Radio TUDN AM-1200, Latino Mix FM-93.5 (Omar Ramos, Miguel Esparza)

Latest Betting Line: Vikings by 5 1/2 (Over/under 51). Money line, Vikings bet $350 to win $100. Bears bet $100 to win $275. Most up to date betting info at SI.com sportsbook.

BearDigest Pick: Vikings 33, Bears 9

BearDigest Record: 13-3, against the spread 7-8-1.

The Series: The 123rd meeting. The Vikings hold a 64-56-2 lead in the series. The Bears have won 16 of the last 21 games between the teams at Soldier Field. The Vikings have won four of the last five overall.

The Coaches: Bears coach Matt Eberflus is 3-13 in his first season including 0-1 against the Vikings, a 29-21 loss at Minneapolis. Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell is 12-4 in his first year including 1-0 against the Bears.

Last Week: Kirk Cousins threw three interceptions and the Vikings also lost a fumble in losing 41-17 to Green Bay at Lambeau Field. Cousins went 18 of 31 for 205 yards with on TD pass. The Packers held wide receiver Justin Jefferson to one catch for 15 yards while Aaron Rodgers went 15 of 24 for 159 yards with one TD pass and Aaron Jones ran for 111 yard on 14 carries with a TD for the Packers.

Justin Fields suffered a hip injury and ran for 132 yards but the Bears allowed 34 straight points after they led 10-7 and lost 41-10 to Detroit. The Lions sacked Fields seven times and held the Bears to 30 yards net passing. Fields had 75 yards passing but there were 45 yards in sack yardage. The Bears had only 11 carries by running backs and allowed 265 yards rushing.

This Season:

The Vikings are playing for the second seed in the playoffs. They need a win and a 49ers loss to Arizona at San Francisco in order to take second seed. If they're seeded second, they would play the Packers, Lions or Seahawks. If they're seeded third, they would play the Giants. Minnesota has 28 passing TDs from Cousins on 407 of 623 for 4,322 yards, with 14 interceptions. Dalvin Cook has 1,136 yards rushing, 7 less than Fields had for the Bears this year. Jefferson has 124 catches for 1,771 yards and eight TD. Safety Harrison Smith leads the Vikings with five interceptions. Danielle Hunter has 10 1/2 sacks and Za'Darius Smith 10.

The Bears are playing for the first pick in the NFL Draft. With a loss and a Houston win over the Colts, the Bears would draft first for the first time since 1947. If they lose and Houston loses, the Bears pick second. The Bears could draft as late as fourth. It requires a win over the Vikings and losses by the Rams and the Broncos. They would be third in the draft if they win and either the Rams or the Broncos lose. The Bears are without Justin Fields (hip) and Nathan Peterman starts at quarterback. Peterman has played in 12 NFL games with four starts and his last start came in 2018. He is 74 of 141 (52.5%) with three TDs and 13 interceptions. With 7 yards receiving tight end Cole Kmet finishes as the team receiving yardage leader. He has 487 yards going into the game and trails Darnell Mooney by 6 yards. His 46 catches leads the team. David Montgomery could be in his last Bears game, as an unrestricted free agent following the season. He has 780 yards on 194 attempts with five TDs and 34 catches for 316 yards and one TD.

Matching Up:

The Vikings are 13th on offense, seventh passing and 28th at rushing. They have the eighth most points in the league. Minnesota on defense ranks 31st, 31st against the pass and 20th against the run. Their defense has allowed the second-most points after the Bears.
The Bears are 28th on offense, 32nd (last) passing and first in rushing. They are 23rd in scoring. Chicago is 28th on defense, 31st againt the run and 13th against the pass. They have allowed the most points in the NFL.

Injury Report:

Vikings: C Garrett Bradbury (back) and DT James Lynch (shoulder) are out. LB Brian Asamoah (knee), CB Cameron Dantzler (ankle) and DE Za'Darius Smith (personal) are questionable. On Saturday, S Harrison Smith was ruled out (knee).
Bears: QB Justin Fields (hip), CB Jaylon Jones (concussion), DB Sterling Weatherford (illness) are out. DT Angel Blackson (illness), CB Kyler Gordon (illness, groin) and LB Terrell Lewis (personal) are questionable.

Of Note: The Bears are trying to lead the league in rushing for the first time since 1986 when Walter Payton was their leading rusher. They need 79 yards to break the franchise team rushing record set in 1984 of 2,974 yards. ... The Vikings lost standout RT Brian O’Neill and backup C Austin Schlottman to season-ending injuries last week. ReguCousins' 49.2 passer rating last week was a season low. His 4,322 passing yards is second most in Vikings history. ... The injury to Bradbury isn't the only Viknigs problem. They lost Pro Bowl tackle Brian O'Neill and center Austin Schlottman to season-ending injuries last week.

Key Individual Matchups

Bears CB Harrison Hand vs. Vikings WR Justin Jefferson

Hand did get on the field for 40 plays last week and didn't give up a completion, according to Sportradar. At least that's a good sign. The Bears could move Kyler Gordon to the right side or slot instead of the left side for this one to get a more favorable matchup for plays when Jefferson lines up at his normal position, but the Vikings move him around so much there isn't much point to it. They're not likely to assign Gordon to Jefferson all over the field like with injured Jaylon Johnson because of inexperience. So Hand, who has one career start for three seasons, will be trying to stop the division's best receiver.

Bears S Jaquan Brisker vs. Vikings TE TJ Hockenson

Since coming to Minnesota nine games ago, Hockenson has made 59 catches for 503 yards, only an 8.5-yard average. He was averaging 15.2 at Detroit. He has three TD catches. Brisker has had a spotty finish to his season, but most of the troubles have come in defending the run and not the pass, as he's had a few plays when he wasn't fitting up in his lane to stop a ball carrier. He has just one pass defensed on the year.

Bears TE Cole Kmet vs. Vikings LB Eric Kendricks

The Bears need to look to force this matchup. Kendricks has not had a good year, grading out at 50th of 84 linebackers in the league that Pro Football Focus assesses, and he's been 75th of 84 against the pass. Kmet's greatest strides this year came in run blocking but he has been more dependable in the red zone. He has six TD catches and last week should have had a chance at another but Justin Fields didn't see him wide open crossing in the back of the end zone on a failed third-down play just before the Bears settled for a first-quarter field goal.

Bears RT Riley Reiff vs. Vikings DE Danielle Hunter

Hunter has bounced back strong this year after a 2021 cut short by injury. He has 10 1/2 sacks and 22 quarterback hits, including 10 QB hits in the last three games. He also has 12 tackles for loss. The Bears had trouble trying to stop him in the first game with Larry Borom blocking him, as Hunter had a sack and two tackles for loss. Reiff had one of the better days by a Bears offensive lineman last week, which isn't saying much. He has allowed three sacks and committed four penalties. Reif is ranked 60th of 80 tackles graded by PFF.

Bears CB Breon Borders vs. Vikings WR K.J. Osborn

It used to be that Jefferson and Adam Theilen took up a defense's attention but they have a third and wide receiver target who has risen in the ranks. Osborn has 55 receptions and five TDs this year. From the way the injury situation shapes up for the Bears, they could have Borders in the lineup with Josh Blackwell on IR, Jaylon Jones in concussion protocol and Kyler Gordon hurting and ill. Borders was a college interception ace at Duke with 12. The Bears are his sixth team in five seasons.

Bears LT Braxton Jones vs. Vikings DE Za'Darius Smith

Smith, a Bears nemesis while in Green Bay, has 24 QB hits and 15 tackles for loss besides his 10 sacks. Jones is coming off an awful game against Detroit when he sat afterward on the bench and in the locker room reflecting on his mistakes. James Houston had three sacks last week and was going against him. It's the bull rush that is overwhelming Jones and that can't happen in the NFL to a tackle. It's possible Smith might not play after missing practice for personal reasons but unlikely.

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