Halftime: Chicago Bears trail Minnesota Vikings 10-3 after Justin Fields and David Montgomery lose fumbles

The Chicago Bears have 14 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list heading into tonight’s game against the Minnesota Vikings.

But they at least will have defensive coordinator Sean Desai back in the fold after he was in COVID-19 protocols last week. Offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and special teams coordinator Chris Tabor are still out.

We have all the Week 15 updates from Soldier Field.

Halftime: Bears trail 10-3 after losing 2 fumbles

The Bears lost two fumbles in the first half and trailed the Vikings 10-3 at halftime.

Quarterback Justin Fields and running back David Montgomery each had a turnover. Fields’ lost fumble led to a Vikings field goal, and one drive later, Montgomery lost the ball in the red zone.

The Bears defense, which was missing all of its starters in the secondary because of COVID-19 and injury, did a decent job slowing the Vikings offense.

After Robert Quinn recorded his second sack of the night against Kirk Cousins — his 16th sack of the season — Cousins threw an interception right to Bears safety Deon Bush, who was all alone down the field.

The Bears had a chance to score late in the second quarter, but Vikings defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson blocked Cairo Santos’ 49-yard field-goal attempt. Santos made a 34-yarder earlier in the quarter.

Cousins’ 12-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson gave the Vikings a 7-0 lead with 5:03 to play in the first quarter. On the third-and-5 play, Jefferson beat Bush in the end zone.

Jefferson also caught an 18-yard pass with Marqui Christian in coverage on third-and-8 during the drive to get the Vikings to the 34-yard line.

The Vikings made it 10-0 on a drive that started after Fields fumbled when Cameron Dantzler hit him on a run. Vikings linebacker Anthony Barr recovered.

The Vikings had first-and-10 at the 12 after Bears coach Matt Nagy was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for arguing with an official. But the Bears forced Cousins to throw incomplete and stopped Dalvin Cook for no gain before Quinn sacked Cousins on third down. Greg Joseph then made a 37-yard field goal.

Cousins completed 9 of 16 passes for 60 yards and the touchdown, and Cook had 10 carries for 44 yards.

Fields completed 10 of 12 passes for 93 yards, and Montgomery had 11 carries for 45 yards.

Bears punt returner Jakeem Grant, who was named to the Pro Bowl before the game, left to be evaluated for a concussion.

Inactives announced

Bears inside linebacker Roquan Smith and defensive lineman Akiem Hicks are active Monday night against the Vikings.

Smith suffered a hamstring injury against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving. He hasn’t missed any starts, but he aggravated the injury last week against the Green Bay Packers.

Hicks missed the last four games with an ankle injury.

The Bears activated offensive tackle Germain Ifedi from injured reserve, and he will play Monday. Ifedi has been out since Oct. 10 with a knee injury and returned to practice last week.

The Bears elevated eight players from the practice squad, and all are active: wide receivers Nsimba Webster and Dazz Newsome, defensive backs Thomas Graham Jr., Dee Virgin, Michael Joseph and BoPete Keyes, linebacker Charles Snowden and defensive end LaCale London.

Inactive for the Bears are cornerback Xavier Crawford, left tackle Jason Peters, wide receiver Marquise Goodwin and defensive lineman Khyiris Tonga.

All 14 players who entered the day on the reserve/COVID-19 list also are out.

For the Vikings, quarterback Kellen Mond, wide receiver Adam Thielen, linebacker Chazz Surratt and guard Wyatt Davis are inactive.

Pregame

The Chicago Bears announced more bad news regarding their COVID-19 outbreak Sunday when they placed starting cornerback Jaylon Johnson and safety Tashaun Gipson on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

That gave them 14 players on the list heading into Monday night’s game against the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field.

Johnson and Gipson were two of several big names in an outbreak that especially has affected an already depleted Bears secondary. Starting safety Eddie Jackson and cornerback Artie Burns, who started the last three games in place of Kindle Vildor, are also on the list, as is nickel Duke Shelley. Meanwhile, cornerback Xavier Crawford is out because of a concussion and safety DeAndre Houston-Carson is out with a broken forearm.

So the Bears could be in for a big test against a Vikings offense that averages 390.5 yards per game, fourth-best in the NFL.

“There’s always something new, and that’s a part of life in the NFL as a leader,” Bears coach Matt Nagy said Saturday of dealing with the challenges this week. “It can try to break you down, but you’ve got to stay positive and you expect the unexpected and you deal with it full steam ahead and you stay positive and you roll.”

Also on the COVID-19 list are right tackle Larry Borom, wide receiver Allen Robinson, quarterback Andy Dalton, tight end Jesse James, defensive lineman Mario Edwards Jr., linebackers Joel Iyiegbuniwe and Sam Kamara, running back Ryan Nall and wide receiver Isaiah Coulter.

Injury report

Along with Crawford and Houston-Carson, left tackle Jason Peters will not play because of a high right ankle sprain.

Wide receiver Marquise Goodwin (foot) and defensive lineman Khyiris Tonga (shoulder) are doubtful.

The status of inside linebacker Roquan Smith and defensive lineman Akiem Hicks will be worth watching after both were listed as questionable. Smith has been dealing with a hamstring injury, and Hicks has missed four games with an ankle injury. The Bears thought Hicks might be ready to play last week, but he was ruled out the day before.

The Vikings listed wide receiver Adam Thielen (ankle) as questionable.

Miss anything this week? Catch up before tonight’s kickoff (7:15 p.m., ESPN).

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