Kirk Cousins knew that the Minnesota Vikings had won ugly. The 19-13 final score probably gave that away, but the 12-6 halftime tally better illustrates how the game went. “We’re not going to be picky about finding a way to get a win,” Cousins offered, unsolicited, after the game. “Soldier Field has always been a tough place to play, and it was again today.”
Cousins didn’t play a full game in Solider Field last year because the Vikings had nothing to play for in Week 18. But he only threw for 87 yards in 2021’s matchup in Chicago, two fewer yards than Dalvin Cook had rushing. The Chicago Bears usually aren’t a formidable foe, but the setting often is for Minnesota. Cousins was 21/31 for 181 yards. Alexander Mattison led the Vikings with 44 yards on the ground. T.J. Hockenson had a team-high 50 yards receiving; K.J. Osborn had 48.
“I thought their defense did a pretty good job against us,” Cousins added. “We could have, should have, need to be much better on offense, probably a combination of things there. The second half especially, want to get more going in the second half.”
The Vikings only had two first downs in the second half. Historically, the Bears have been good defensively, going back to the Monsters of the Midway. But they haven’t been particularly formidable this year. Chicago gave up 41 points to the Kansas City Chiefs, 38 to the Green Bay Packers, 31 to the hapless Denver Broncos, and 27 to Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bears defense alone doesn’t explain Minnesota’s offensive ineptitude. Nor does the weather. It was 55 degrees and sunny at kickoff.
It starts with Justin Jefferson, who missed the first game of his career. Jefferson alone cannot buoy Minnesota’s offense. But the Vikings were missing a go-to guy in crucial spots and only converted 15.4% of their third downs in Chicago. Cousins makes an effort to spread the ball around, and he’s forgiving with receivers. Hockenson dropped his first target, which didn’t come until 6:56 in the second quarter. Still, he led the offense with eight targets.
Cousins has trusted Jordan Addison and Brandon Powell on third- and fourth-down before. But Addison finished with 28 yards and a touchdown, and Powell finished with 20. Mattison had 28 yards receiving. “We didn’t string plays together,” said Cousins. “There were some third downs, there was tight man coverage, and we just couldn’t seem to throw, make the catch, make the play, and then other times we just had some really long yardage where we were checking down underneath, and it was hard to get to the sticks.”
Kevin O’Connell felt that the offense was lacking in the details and that it could improve with a week of practice.
“Offensively, we’ve got to be better,” he said.
[We] didn’t run it all that well today. Didn’t handle the movement. Didn’t handle a lot of the things we anticipated that we did see, and then, in general, just a couple plays here and there in the pass game. I thought Kirk played really clean, really efficient football, gave some guys some opportunities. Jordan down the sideline in the first half, a couple third downs there where we’re just slightly off.
The defense bailed Minnesota out in Chicago. Jordan Hicks had an impressive over-the-shoulder interception on a Justin Fields pass intended for D.J. Moore. Danielle Hunter hit Fields, who threw a wounded duck straight up in the air. Hicks tracked it down and reeled in the interception with 1:47 left in the first half. The Vikings scored a touchdown on the ensuing possession.
However, Hicks’ most impressive play was a scoop-and-score with 6:44 to go in the third quarter. Josh Metellus hit Bears backup quarterback Tyson Bargent, jostling the ball loose. Hicks picked it up off the bounce at Chicago’s 42-yard line and ran it in for a touchdown, making it 19-6. “What Jordan did today kind of rivaled what Harry did against the [Carolina] Panthers,” O’Connell said, referring to Harrison Smith’s 14-tackle, three-sack effort in Charlotte. “It just felt like he was not going to be denied a chance to be the guy to go out there and respond.”
The Vikings left the Windy City with a win. But the Bears game was similar to the Carolina game in a concerning way. The defense bailed them out in Chicago like it did against the Panthers. That isn’t a winning formula. Offense is Minnesota’s strength, and they can’t rely on their defense to win against better teams. Brian Flores may be one of the best defensive coaches in the league, but that unit is undermanned.
Conversely, the Vikings have continuously emphasized their various offensive weapons. They used a first-round pick on Addison, offered a contract to Hockenson that reset the market, and traded for Cam Akers to create a one-two punch with Mattison. But they couldn’t win by more than one score against a defense that has given up 29.3 points per game and a backup quarterback who played his last meaningful football against the Colorado School of Mines. Minnesota has an expensive offense filled with skilled players. But they looked lost without Justin Jefferson.
