Vikings aim for 3rd straight season sweep of Bears, who have lost 12 division games in a row
CHICAGO (3-8) at MINNESOTA (6-5)
Monday, 8:15 p.m. EST, ABC/ESPN.
OPENING LINE: Vikings by 3½, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
AGAINST THE SPREAD: Bears 4-6-1; Vikings 7-4.
SERIES RECORD: Vikings lead 66-57-2.
LAST MEETING: Vikings beat Bears 19-13 on Oct. 15 in Chicago.
LAST WEEK: Bears lost to Lions 31-26; Vikings lost to Broncos 21-20.
BEARS OFFENSE: OVERALL (20), RUSH (4), PASS (25), SCORING (19).
BEARS DEFENSE: OVERALL (15), RUSH (2), PASS (26), SCORING (29).
VIKINGS OFFENSE: OVERALL (10), RUSH (28), PASS (3), SCORING (11).
VIKINGS DEFENSE: OVERALL (13), RUSH (7), PASS (17), SCORING (15).
TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Bears minus-6; Vikings minus-6.
BEARS PLAYER TO WATCH: QB Justin Fields. The 11th overall pick in the 2021 draft was sharp last week in his return from a dislocated right thumb. Fields completed 16 of 23 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown for an 105.2 rating after missing the previous four games. He also had a season-high 104 yards on 18 rushes in Detroit. Fields threw an interception in Week 6 against the Vikings and was sacked four times.
VIKINGS PLAYER TO WATCH: OLB Danielle Hunter. Second in the NFL with 12 sacks entering Week 12, Hunter is on pace to easily beat his career high (14½) set in 2018 and matched in 2019. The three-time Pro Bowl pick, who’s set to become a free agent in the spring, had the sack of Fields last month that caused the awkward landing on the ground that injured the QB’s thumb.
KEY MATCHUP: Bears WR D.J. Moore vs. Vikings DBs. Moore had seven catches for 96 yards and a TD on nine targets from Fields against the Lions. In the four games Fields missed, Moore went scoreless and totaled only 20 receptions. The Vikings have held four of their past eight opponents under 220 passing yards.
KEY INJURIES: Bears C Lucas Patrick (back) and RB D’Onta Foreman (ankle) were hurt against the Lions. … Vikings CB Akayleb Evans (calf) missed the previous game and will likely be questionable to play this week, coach Kevin O’Connell said. WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) has been sidelined six straight games. With the upcoming bye week, the Vikings could take the cautious route and hold their superstar out one more game.
SERIES NOTES: The Vikings have won five straight games, and six of seven, against the Bears. The Vikings have swept the Bears in each the past two years. They had just five sweeps over the past 22 seasons. … The Bears are 3-4 all time at U.S. Bank Stadium. … The longtime division rivals have met once in the playoffs, a 35-18 victory by the Bears at the Metrodome in Minnesota on Jan. 1, 1995.
STATS AND STUFF: The Bears have 12 straight losses against NFC North opponents since a Week 12 win at Detroit in 2021. They are 0-9 against the division in two seasons under coach Matt Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles. Their overall record under Eberflus and Poles is 6-22. … Chicago blew a 12-point lead with three minutes left in losing to the Lions last week. … The Bears can surpass their win total from last season, when they were a league-worst 3-14. … Chicago still ranks last in the NFL with 15 sacks after getting two against Jared Goff last week. … The Vikings are 1-2 in games decided by three points or fewer. They were 5-0 last season. … Vikings QB Joshua Dobbs lost a fumble and threw an interception last week against the Broncos. He became the first player in NFL history with at least one passing and one rushing TD in each of his first three games with a team. … Vikings RB Ty Chandler had a career-high 73 yards on 10 carries, including a 31-yard scamper on a fake punt, at Denver last week. He also had four catches for 37 yards, both career highs. … The Vikings are allowing only 3.68 yards per rush, the fourth-best mark in the league. They ranked 22nd, 29th, 23rd and 19th over the past four seasons.
FANTASY TIP: Bears RB Khalil Herbert returned last week from a lower leg injury that sidelined him for five games, gaining just 35 yards on 16 carries. But over his past two games before he was hurt in October, Herbert rushed 28 times for 179 yards with a receiving TD.
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