After their 59-37 win against the Carolina Panthers, the Chicago Bears will play their first division game of the season against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. Chicago lost their first game versus Minnesota last season, but rebounded later in the year with a 19-17 win.
Playing against the Vikings is always a challenge with Brian Flores at defensive coordinator and the challenges they pose on offense, specifically with wide receiver Justin Jefferson. It is always a chess match between Bears head coach Ben Johnson and Flores when the two face each other, so this should be a highly entertaining game.
The Vikings also had a good season debut, especially in the fourth quarter, against the Green Bay Packers. Minnesota scored 29 unanswered points to
finish the game with touchdowns on their last four drives excluding the kneel downs. Their defense also forced a Green Bay turnover on two of their last three drives. This is a good team on both sides of the ball and they have been underestimated all season and continue to be even after this win.
If Chicago is going to win this game and get to 2-0 on the season, they need to address these three concerns:
Vikings will want to run the ball
Odds are starting quarterback Kyler Murray is going to be out for this game, meaning Carson Wentz will start for the first time since October of last year. Wentz also played most of the game against the Packers and he only threw for 133 passing yards. Minnesota had 34 rushing attempts and even though their top running back is going to be out for at least the next four games, Aaron Jones is capable of carrying the run game. The Bears were terrible against the run last season and did not do well in the season opener. Carolina averaged 5.7 yards per carry and had two rushing touchdowns. Chicago needs to stop the run if they are going to win this game.
Justin Jefferson will be an active part of the passing game
When Carson Wentz actually did throw the ball, it generally went in the direction of Justin Jefferson. He finished the game with eight receptions for 92 yards and two touchdowns. Furthermore, in the 10 games Jefferson has played against the Bears, he has averaged 79 receiving yards and has a total of four touchdowns. Not only is Jefferson’s history of success against Chicago concerning, but so is cornerback Jaylon Johnson’s performance in the season opener. Johnson was targeted seven times and allowed five receptions for 127 yards. Carolina quarterback Bryce Young had a quarterback rating of 113.7 when throwing in Johnson’s direction. If he plays like that against Justin Jefferson, the Bears are going to get burned.
Bears have a tendency to shoot themselves in the foot
Penalties were a problem for the Bears last season, and that trend continued in the season opener against the Carolina Panthers with 12 penalties. Setting yourself back with penalties can fly against a mediocre team. But, when playing against a Brian Flores defense, that is how teams lose games they are capable of winning. For example, the Bears had 12 penalties against the Vikings last season when they lost; they only had six penalties against Minnesota in their victory. This is something Chicago can easily clean up from last week and they need to if they are going to beat the Vikings.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: 3 causes for concern as the Bears face the Vikings in Week 2
