Sport Preview: Bears at Vikings | 2025 Week 11 – Chicago Bears

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The Bears (6-3) will search their third straight win and seventh of their final eight video games Sunday once they go to the Vikings (4-5) at U.S. Financial institution Stadium.
After a loss to the Ravens Oct. 26 snapped their four-game profitable streak, the Bears rebounded to report back-to-back comeback victories the previous two weekends over the Bengals 47-42 and Giants 24-20.
Minnesota opened the season 3-2 however is 1-3 since its bye week, dropping to the Eagles 28-22 and Chargers 37-10, beating the Lions 27-24 and falling to the Ravens 27-10. All 4 of these groups made the playoffs in 2024. The Vikings are 3-2 on the highway and 1-3 at residence.
“You have a look at this crew we’re about to play and [I have] numerous respect for his or her teaching workers,” stated coach Ben Johnson. “[Kevin] O’Connell, he was the coach of the yr final yr for a cause. He all the time has his guys taking part in and so they’re in all these one-score video games, and so they often discover a technique to come out on high of them.”
Sunday’s recreation is the Bears’ first towards an NFC North opponent since Week 2 in Detroit. It is also a rematch of their 27-24 season-opening loss to the Vikings at Soldier Area.
“We’re a special crew than we have been Week 1; so is Minnesota,” Johnson stated. “This shall be a very totally different matchup so far as I’m involved. The belief stage has grown for quite a few gamers inside our teaching workers. We will actually dangle our hat on quite a few guys at this level and really feel actually good about what we’ll get on gameday.”
Caleb Williams quarterbacks a Bears offense that ranks seventh within the NFL in factors per recreation (26.6) and third in whole yards (379.8), second dashing (147.3) and eleventh passing (232.2). He has mixed spectacular arm expertise with elite scrambling capability and elusiveness to develop into a difference-maker this season.
Williams has thrown for two,136 yards with 13 touchdowns, 4 interceptions and a 92.5 passer ranking. He has additionally rushed for 246 yards and three TDs, together with 116 yards the previous two weeks versus the Bengals and Giants, the second most by an NFL quarterback throughout that span. As well as, he has lowered the variety of sacks he is taken per recreation from 4.0 final yr to 1.6 in 2025.
Williams will face a Vikings protection Sunday that is coordinated by Brian Flores, who is understood for disguising coverages and using a excessive quantity of blitzes.
“He is most likely one of many tougher coaches that I’ve ever needed to go towards to this point in my profession,” Williams stated. “Clearly, I have not performed each single crew but and each single D-coordinator, however up thus far, he is been that. Each single play, he is difficult you to the complete psychological capability that you’re and could be. That is all the time a enjoyable recreation going versus [Flores] and his protection and all of his gamers over there that he has on that facet of the ball.”
“[I’ve] obtained numerous respect for Flores,” Johnson stated. “Offers you every kind of issues. You have obtained to have the ability to be in your greatest for all 60, 70 performs on offense to have an opportunity. And it is as mentally fatiguing as it’s bodily fatiguing for our guys. Fairly a problem. They do quite a few issues very nicely.”
The identical might be stated for the Bears offense. The unit has rushed for no less than 170 yards in three of the final 4 video games and is averaging 183.4 yards on the bottom since Week 6, essentially the most within the NFL throughout that span. D’Andre Swift leads the crew in dashing with 544 yards and 4 TDs on 113 carries. Rookie Kyle Monangai has added 390 yards and a pair of TDs on 75 makes an attempt.
The Vikings protection ranks 18th within the NFL in factors allowed per recreation (23.7) and twelfth in whole yards (317.2), twenty second towards the run (125.6) and ninth versus the move (191.7). The unit is led by sort out Jalen Redmond, outdoors linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. and security Josh Metellus. Edge rusher Jonathan Greenard has been dominated out of Sunday’s recreation with a shoulder damage.
Key matchup: Bears proper sort out Darnell Wright vs. Vikings outdoors linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel
Wright has taken his recreation to the following stage in his third NFL season, drawing reward from O’Connell, who referred to as the Bears’ 2023 first-round decide “among the best proper tackles in soccer.” Wright shall be opposed by Van Ginkel, an All-Professional final season when he registered 11.5 sacks and returned two interceptions for touchdowns. He’s slated to make his third straight begin Sunday after lacking 5 video games with a neck damage.
Minnesota is quarterbacked by J.J. McCarthy, a 2024 first-round decide who made his first NFL begin within the season opener towards the Bears after lacking his complete rookie yr with a knee damage.
The Michigan product will make his third straight begin Sunday after sitting out 5 video games with an ankle damage. He’s 2-2 as a starter this season, throwing for 692 yards with 5 TDs, six interceptions and a 65.8 passer ranking. McCarthy has additionally rushed for 110 yards and a pair of TDs on 21 carries.
“His capability to make use of his toes to create within the passing recreation is a problem for us,” stated defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. “And so they’ve obtained so many expert gamers that make it so troublesome to defend. You need to load the field and attempt to take the run recreation away, and you have got ability place gamers on the surface that make it a problem. And then you definitely need to play them in a light-weight field, and also you attempt to commit extra sources to the passing recreation after which the run recreation comes alive.”
McCarthy’s high goal is receiver Justin Jefferson, a four-time All-Professional who leads the Vikings with 51 receptions for 686 yards and a pair of TDs.
“He is obtained an incredible really feel for the sport,” Allen stated. “He does an incredible job of understanding arrange his routes to create separation. And extra so than anything, this man is without doubt one of the extra aggressive guys that we’ll go towards. I feel that is what actually makes nice gamers nice.”
The Bears entered Week 11 main the NFL with 20 takeaways, 13 interceptions and a plus-14 turnover ratio. They’ve generated 19 takeaways of their six wins and just one of their three losses. The Vikings have dedicated 16 giveaways, tied for the second most within the NFL, and have a minus-7 turnover ratio.
The protection is led by finish Montez Sweat, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and security Kevin Byard III. Sweat tops the unit with 5.5 sacks, matching his whole from all of final yr. Edmunds and Byard are tied with Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd for the NFL lead with 4 interceptions. Edmunds’ 9 picks since he joined the Bears in 2023 are essentially the most by any linebacker within the league and Byard’s 33 interceptions since he entered the NFL in 2016 are essentially the most by any participant.
Key matchup: Bears defensive finish Montez Sweat vs. Vikings proper sort out Brian O’Neill
Sweat enters Week 11 having recorded no less than one sack in every of his final 4 video games and can look to proceed that streak Sunday. He’ll line up throughout from O’Neill, who was chosen by the Vikings within the second spherical of the 2018 draft out of Pittsburgh and final yr was voted to his second Professional Bowl.
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