Vikings injury concern leaves no excuse for Bears' defense in Week 11

After some rough showings in recent weeks, the Chicago Bears defense should have a field day on Sunday.

Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

It's still too early in the season to call a game a 'must-win' for the Chicago Bears, but Sunday's Week 11 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings has the feel of one all the same. A loss to the 4-5 Vikings would not only put them behind the 8-ball when it comes to playoff seeding, but it'd also be a major psychological defeat, too. There's a reason why the Bears still have something to prove entering Week 11, after all.

The Bears need a win on Sunday to keep momentum rolling, and a key Vikings injury will make it that much easier to come by a win. Rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy banged his throwing hand in last week's game, and according to Brad Biggs, covering the Bears for the Chicago Tribune, McCarthy was wearing a wrap on his hand during warmups.

#Vikings QB JJ McCarthy has some type of wrap on his right throwing hand for warmups. The hand was bruised in last week's game. Fox will surely have up-close shots of it when the game begins. He's completing 53.7% of his passes and a hand injury only complicates issues.

— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) November 16, 2025

McCarthy has flashed some great potential thus far, but he's also shown a lot of bad. In four games, he's thrown six interceptions and is completing just 53.7% of his passes. Considering how elite this Vikings offense was a year ago, those are troubling signs.

No excuses for Bears defense in Week 11

In my 5 bold predictions for this Bears vs Vikings game, I picked McCarthy to throw at least two interceptions just based on his previous play. But if his hand is still bothering him a week after the injury, then there's frankly no excuse for this Bears defense not to come away with multiple interceptions. McCarthy is going to be struggling to grip the ball properly, which will only exacerbate his accuracy issues.

This isn't to say that the Bears should shutout the Vikings. Justin Jefferson is a top matchup problem for the Bears, and they still have a dangerous rushing attack they can lean on. Head coach Kevin O'Connell at this point in his coaching career has proven capable of overcoming adversity. However, given the injury to McCarthy's throwing hand, I have no problem expecting Dennis Allen's defense to have its way on Sunday and help the Bears put up their third straight win.

Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

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