Vikings

Bears New COVID Placements Give the Minnesota Vikings A Huge Break

Photo Credit: Jim Dedmon (USA TODAY Sports)

Circumstances rarely seem to matter when the Minnesota Vikings travel to Chicago to take on the Bears. No matter records and rosters, the Purple seem to constantly find themselves in difficult, low-scoring battles that rarely end up in their favor. That pattern will get strongly tested on Monday.

This isn’t the Chicago Bears defense of years past. The Monsters of the Midway come into Monday night’s matchup with the Minnesota Vikings ranked 27th in points against, 30th in forced turnovers and 29th in interceptions. Already plagued by injuries and in the midst of a COVID outbreak that sidelined 12 players and 3 coordinators, the Bears got more bad news on Sunday.

Chicago placed cornerback Jaylon Johnson and safety Tashaun Gipson on the reserve/COVID-19 list, further depleting their already short-handed roster for Monday night’s game.

With the addition of Johnson and Gipson, the Bears have 14 players on the list. That includes their entire starting secondary; cornerbacks Johnson and Artie Burns, safeties Gipson and Eddie Jackson and nickel Duke Shelley.

Due to a season of inconsistent play, the Vikings find themselves in a must-win position to keep their playoff hopes alive. With Justin Jefferson on an absurd pace in his sophomore season, this might be just the opportunity the Vikings need to break away from the style of football that has plagued them in the Windy City for years.

Minnesota is dealing with their own depth issues. Adam Thielen is still undecided for Monday night with a high ankle sprain and two of their depth receivers will miss the game due to COVID. Still, an already struggling defense missing nearly their entire secondary is the perfect opportunity for Kirk Cousins and Company to put up a ton of points and put this game away early. If they fail to do so, Vikings fans might find themselves watching what feels like a rerun of gut wrenching Chicago games of the past.

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Andrew Van Ginkel Brings Versatility and Energy To Minnesota's Defense

Photo Credit: Jim Dedmon (USA TODAY Sports)

When the NFL’s 2024 free-agency window opened, the Minnesota Vikings quickly attacked the defensive side of the ball, adding a trio of players, including Andrew Van Ginkel. […]

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