Chicago Bears @ Minnesota Vikings
Sunday, November 16th, 1:00 PM ET
This could be a fun game. The Chicago Bears came back in the fourth quarter and beat the New York Giants in Week 10. Giants’ QB Jaxson Dart ended up leaving that game with a concussion. The Bears are now 6-3 on the season and keeping pace with the Detroit Lions in the NFC.
Sure, Chicago might be a year away from truly competing, but a 6-3 record is a 6-3 record no matter how you slice it, so the Bears are in a great spot under first-year head coach Ben Johnson. Caleb Williams is on the right track, but the defense is still a bit of an issue.
On the flip side, the Minnesota Vikings lost a stinker to the Baltimore Ravens at home but do have a chance to sweep the season series, as they beat the Bears in Chicago earlier in the season. Second-year QB and de-facto rookie JJ McCarthy as not looked good this year, but his early-season breakout did seem to come against Chicago.
And with this game being at home, the Vikings should be viewed as a slight favorite in this one. Kevin O’Connell is also a more proven head coach than Ben Johnson at this point, so that has to be good for something.
Chicago is approaching a territory where they could be playing legitimate games late in the season to potentially win the NFC North, and this game is approaching ‘must win’ territory if you ask me. However, I think the explosive and aggressive Vikings’ defense is going to make a huge play late in the game to clinch the victory.
JJ McCarthy probably bounces back after some shaky outings, and the Vikings pull out a huge victory to keep the NFC North crowded and uncertain. The home team wins by two points.