The Vikings left Chicago with a win that looked nothing like the team most people expected to see.
On a tarp-covered Soldier Field, with rain hanging over the weekend and never really letting go, Minnesota traded the usual fireworks for a grind. The passing game stayed mostly in the background, the run game carried the load, and the defense controlled the flow in a muddy, bruising affair that felt far more like an old-school survival test than a modern NFL shootout.
It was ugly. It was effective.
And it got the Vikings out of Chicago with a victory.
Carson Wentz was efficient enough to keep things moving without giving the game away. He completed 11 of 20 passes for 143 yards, threw no touchdowns and had an interception dropped, with the rain doing part of the work there.
The one real spark through the air came early, when Wentz connected with Justin Jefferson on a nice gain on the opening drive. After that, Minnesota leaned hard on Aaron Jones Sr., who ran 23 times for 105 yards and gave the offense the kind of steady edge it needed in the weather.
The defense, though, was the headliner again.
Dallas Turner kept building his case as one of the league’s most disruptive young pass rushers. The third-year edge rusher added two more sacks, including the game-sealing hit on Tyson Bagent, and did it in a sequence where Turner turned Colston Loveland into his personal wrecking ball.
Through two weeks, he now sits at the top of the NFL in pressures and QB hits, and he’s second in sacks. He’s only 23, and he looks like the next big name in a franchise line that has had plenty of them.
Blake Cashman and Andrew Van Ginkel also got to the quarterback, adding more pressure to a Bears offense that never found much comfort. Jalen Redmond chipped in four tackles and a forced fumble to stop a Chicago drive near the goal line, and Isaiah Rodgers recovered it.
Rodgers also delivered a blocked field goal that swung the game further in Minnesota’s favor. First-round pick Caleb Banks was active throughout, piling up six tackles while shutting down runs in the backfield.
That was the story of the afternoon: Minnesota’s defense kept landing punches, and Brian Flores had the upper hand in the matchup with Bears head coach Ben Johnson.
Will Reichard handled the scoring for the Vikings, knocking through all three field goals and finishing the day a perfect 4-for-4 on the season. His last one bounced off the upright and still found its way through, which felt fitting for a game that kept skidding around in the rain until the very end.
The bigger picture is pretty simple right now. Minnesota is 2-0, both wins have come against divisional opponents, and the team has done it while carrying some obvious flaws.
The passing game has produced just 259 net yards over two games. The running back group has been inconsistent and banged up.
The defense has had trouble finishing tackles even while generating plenty of pressure. Still, the Vikings keep winning, and Flores’ scheme has been the main reason why.
There was also some encouraging news after the game. O’Connell said Kyler Murray remains on track to be cleared from concussion protocol early this week, which could give the offense a much-needed lift if he’s able to return. For now, Wentz has been holding things together, but barely.
Around the NFC, the early season picture is already getting messy. The Lions lost 41-31 to the Bills.
The Packers survived the Jets 20-17 in overtime, a game that had a Vikings watch party chanting “J-E-T-S”. The Bears also had the added concern of Caleb Williams being carted off with what appears to be a hamstring injury, though no official prognosis had been announced.
The defending champs beat the Cardinals with Drew Lock starting while Sam Darnold recovers. The Eagles beat Tennessee 24-20, the Commanders fell to Dallas 37-20 after Jayden Daniels suffered a brutal arm injury, and the 49ers rolled past the Dolphins 35-13.
The Rams were still set to face the Giants on Monday.
That leaves Minnesota sitting in a strong spot as it heads into Week 3, but there’s no room to get comfortable. The Vikings go to Tampa Bay next Sunday afternoon to face a Buccaneers team that’s 0-2 after losses to Cincinnati and Cleveland.
Baker Mayfield has just one passing touchdown, and he’s already been sacked seven times. Tampa Bay’s pass defense also gave up 254 passing yards and a touchdown to Joe Burrow in Week 1, then 238 yards and two scores to Deshaun Watson in Week 2.
The Bucs need a win, and the Vikings need to make sure this fast start doesn’t turn into a letdown. Right now, though, they’ve built themselves a rare early cushion: two divisional wins, a perfect record, and a defense that keeps showing up no matter how ugly the weather gets.
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Aaron Jones Gave Vikings Fans One More Reason To Hate That No-Call
The Vikings got what they wanted from a gritty, weather-heavy win over the Bears, with the defense setting the tone and Aaron Jones doing enough on the ground to keep Minnesota moving. Jones carried 23 times for 106 rushing yards, giving the offense a steady source of production in a game where clean footing and clean execution were at a premium.
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Vikings Week 3 Outlook Just Got A Lot More Interesting
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Carson Wentz has done his part to keep the ship moving, starting the first two games and helping Minnesota get off to a 2-0 start. But Murrays expected return adds a different layer to a game that already carried some weight, giving the Vikings a chance to see whether their early momentum can hold with the lineup moving back closer to normal. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Fans Got Caught In Foxs Most Infuriating Broadcast Mess
FOX Sports turned Week 2 into a strange viewing exercise before the network got its act together for the nightcap, as audio feeds did not match the games being shown during multiple early NFL telecasts. The mix-up meant viewers were hearing commentary for the wrong game while trying to keep up with the action on the screen, and the confusion only deepened when the scorebug briefly disappeared during overtime of the Packers-Jets matchup.
By the time the primetime window arrived, FOX had resolved the audio problems and moved on to its Cowboys-Commanders broadcast with Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady. For fans tracking the early slate, especially anyone trying to follow the Packers, it was an unwelcome reminder that even in the middle of an NFL Sunday, the network can still be the most distracting thing on the field. [Read more 🡒]