Struggling Opponent Should Result In Easy Win For Minnesota Vikings — Not So Fast

Vikings fans don’t even have to be told. Monday’s game against the Chicago Bears is exactly the kind of game that could result in a humiliating disaster for a team that could still have playoff aspirations.

Embarrassment in the NFL usually takes place when a superior team finds its game and lays a serious beating on an overmatched opponent. That’s not how it works for the Minnesota Vikings.

In the case of Mike Zimmer’s team, they fail to put their opponent away and instead breathe life into a team that has hope and little else. That’ what happened in Minnesota’s loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 13, and that team that did not have a single win until the Vikings came calling.

In that game, the Vikings were outplayed badly for a half, but came back to take a late lead. But Minnesota would not take advantage of the potential gift and let the Lions ease down the field and score the winning touchdown on the final play of the game.

Will the Bears follow a similar script on Monday night? It’s quite possible, because the 6-7 Vikings simply don’t know how to put an opponent away. After losing to the Lions, the Vikings nearly blew a 29-point lead before hanging on for a 36-28 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Bears are clearly a team in transition, and reports indicate that a change at the head coaching slot is likely at season’s end. Matt Nagy’s offensive gameplan has resembled a taffy pull, as the Bears lack explosiveness and an overall identity.

They have hope for the future with rookie quarterback Justin Fields, but he has been victimized by his own mistakes, an inconsistent offensive line and a lack of big plays from his receiving crew. Fields has completed 133 of 231 passes for 1,585 yards with 6 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He also has the ability to escape the rush when he rolls out to either side and is clearly dangerous running with the ball. Fields has rushed for 385 yards and two touchdowns.

Ideally, the Bears want to establish a running game with David Montgomery who has rushed for 608 yards and a 4.2 yards per carry average. Ideally, the Bears would combine the talent of their rookie quarterback with Montgomery’s ability to run the ball between the tackles and wide receiver Allen Robinson’s ability to make plays downfield. However, Robinson has struggled with nagging injuries and his numbers are down this season. Robinson is just the Bears’ third-leading receiver with 32 catches for 353 yards and one touchdown. He was placed on the Covid-19 list Thursday.

There is no consistency on that side of the ball, and the team is troubled by injury and illness. The Bears were missing 10 starters at their Thursday practice session, including Robinson, Montgomery, defensive back Eddie Jackson and offensive tackle Teven Jenkins.

The Bears have 12 players on the reserve/COVID-19 list, so it is clear that this 4-9 team will not be at its best for the Monday night football game against the Vikings.

But since the Vikings have not been able to take advantage of any opponent and register a blowout victory, it’s still difficult to expect that to happen in this game. If the Vikings couldn’t roll to a big finish against the Steelers after building a huge lead, why should they do it against the Bears?

The Vikings have also been hit by positive Covid-19 tests, but they are a healthier team than the Bears at this point. Adam Thielen (ankle) and Eric Kendricks (back) missed practice Thursday, but the rest of the team that is not in the Covid protocol participated.

Clearly, this is a game the Vikings have to win, and they opened as 4-point favorites (per OddsShark) and that edge has since moved to 5.5 points.

This is a game that the Vikings can’t let slip through their grasp if they want to have any realistic chance of playoff consideration. That should make the difference, but the Vikings have found themselves in this situation before and have failed to come through.

This should be an easy victory for a talented Minnesota roster, but a life-and-death struggle seems the more likely outcome.