Dhruv Koul shares his in-game reactions, thoughts and observations from the Vikings-Bears “Sunday Night Football” game at Soldier Field. Follow him on Twitter @DhruvKoul to continue the conversation.
CHICAGO — After three straight convincing wins, the 6-3 Chicago Bears took on the 5-3-1 Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field on Sunday night in a game with divisional implications. Tonight’s winner would seize control of the NFC North by virtue of both winning percentage and the current head-to-head tiebreaker. To add more drama, tonight’s game was flexed into NBC’s prime time slot by the NFL, making it the first time the Bears had hosted “Sunday Night Football” at Soldier Field since 2012. Clearly, the NFL is excited that the Bears are relevant again.
I predicted a close game and one that the Vikings would win, for a couple of reasons:
The Vikings are coming off a bye, so they've had ample time to prepare. Mike Zimmer's Double A-gap blitz worries me a ton. Home field advantage is great, but call this a nervous premonition: The game comes down to Cody Parkey.
Prediction: Vikings 24, Bears 23. https://t.co/LPxfCaXe92
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 16, 2018
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I did, however, want to warn Bears’ Twitter from imploding no matter the result tonight. So I tweeted this before the game:
Tonight is the biggest and most consequential game the Bears have played in five years. If they win, excellent. If they lose, it doesn't mean they suck.
Please keep this perspective tonight amidst the hot takes the national media is sure to vomit throughout: The Bears are fun.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 18, 2018
In the end, the Bears tore the Vikings’ offense apart en route to a big time win to take complete control of the NFC North and go to 7-3.
I shared my in-game reactions, thoughts and observations from tonight’s game at Soldier Field below:
1. After the Bears won the toss and elected to defer, the defense held Minnesota to an opening three-and-out. The Vikings tried to run for it on third-and-short, but the run defense converged and Kyle Fuller made a nice tackle for a loss to force a punt. On offense, Mitch Trubisky looked in command once again and calmly drove the Bears down the field, including a very nice run on a critical third down to move the chains. The drive stalled in the red zone, but Cody Parkey hit a 33-yard field goal to put the Bears up 3-0. Overall, a good start to the game.
2. Of course, Cody Parkey then decided to kick off out of bounds. Is it too much to ask for a complete game out of your kicker? Thank goodness for Khalil Mack, though. He stopped a threatening drive by the Vikings in the red zone by forcing Dalvin Cook to fumble. That guy is just unreal.
The Bears went from having #PrimetimeCutty to #PrimetimeMack. Awesome.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 19, 2018
3. Poor interception by Mitch Trubisky. He didn’t drive very well on the throw, and made a poor decision to go deep to Taylor Gabriel when he was double-covered and a third defender closed in quickly for a nice pick (and the ball was underthrown). It was clear Trubisky was on his first read and perhaps just taking a deep shot for the sake of taking a deep shot. He had Tarik Cohen wide open in the flat. He won’t get away with things like that against this defense.
4. Great rebound by the Bears’ offense after the Vikings went three and out. The running game got going, sprung by Trubisky and Jordan Howard. They ate seven minutes off the clock, and it resulted in a Trubisky TD pass to Anthony Miller. The pass was a bit poor, but the catch was sensational. The Bears went for two and converted, making it 11-0. Great start.
Anthony Miller is a beast. Your weekly reminder.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 19, 2018
5. Tarik Cohen is one of the most exciting players in football. It’s not easy to make Harrison Smith skate and miss a tackle. What he does with his speed and cutting ability is amazing.
6. Khalil Mack is dominating Riley Reiff. He’s tossing him aside like an empty box routinely. What a player.
7. I have no idea what Kirk Cousins saw at the end of the first half. That arm-punt interception was one of the worst I’ve ever seen. Easy pick for Adrian Amos. Just wow. Bears escape the half up 14-0.
8. The Bears announced that Aaron Lynch was lost for the game with a concussion at halftime. That likely means they’ll be without him against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day as well. The Bears’ pass rush just took a hit, but it’s an opportunity for Isaiah Irving and/or Kylie Fitts to contribute.
9. Trubisky with another bad interception after the two teams traded punts to open the second half. He just missed Allen Robinson deep on an underthrown pass, and then overthrew Robinson on a bad decision that was an easy pick and was returned to the Bears’ 31. Trubisky has made some plays today, but he’s giving the Vikings a shot to get back in this game. They had no momentum prior to this.
10. Trubisky has had an awful game tonight. But this defense has totally balled out. After Trubisky had a pick-six dropped, the Bears came right back and pick-sixed Kirk Cousins — on a nifty jump and return from Eddie Jackson. He is a star. Trubisky has been bailed out big time tonight.
Mitch Trubisky is gonna take this entire defense to Gibson's.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 19, 2018
11. The refs with an awful DPI call on Roquan Smith when the receiver clearly tripped on his route. That extended a drive that should’ve been over and the Vikings got in for a touchdown. After a tough roughing call on Hicks, the Vikings are within a score by converting the two point try. Trubisky can make up for a lot of poor play tonight if he and the offense can put this game away.
12. Big time conversion on third down from Trubisky to Robinson. Picked up 17 when needing eight yards. Clutch.
13. Really happy for Cody Parkey. He was embattled all week after a ROUGH game against Detroit. But he got the job done today. That’s really key going forward.
So, I was technically right. 👀
Cody Parkey Redemption Game is LIT! https://t.co/P2LDz4oM4n
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 19, 2018
14. What a win.
The Bears are in complete control of the NFC North going into Thanksgiving. Yes, you're reading this correctly. What a night.
— Dhruv Koul (@DhruvKoul) November 19, 2018
15. The Bears have the shortest turnaround time in NFL history coming up, with a late morning (11:30am CT) game coming up on Thanksgiving at Ford Field following a Sunday night game. How will the Bears handle a game on 85 hours’ rest? It remains to be seen. The Lions are tough to beat at home, and you can bet they’ll be looking to avenge the Bears’ beatdown of them at Soldier Field. Trubisky was shaky tonight at home. How will he handle another nationally televised game on the road so soon?
Early Prediction: Bears 23, Lions 21.
