MINNESOTA (1-4) at CHICAGO (1-4)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, FOX
BETTING LINE: Vikings by 4 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook
AGAINST THE SPREAD: Minnesota 1-4; Chicago 1-3-1
SERIES RECORD: Vikings lead 65-57-2
LAST MEETING: Vikings beat Bears 29-13 on Jan. 8, 2023, at Chicago.
LAST WEEK: Vikings lost to Kansas City 27-20; Bears won at Washington 40-20
VIKINGS OFFENSE: OVERALL (9), RUSH (29), PASS (2), SCORING (16)
VIKINGS DEFENSE: OVERALL (19), RUSH (13), PASS (22), SCORING (23)
BEARS OFFENSE: OVERALL (14), RUSH (9), PASS (T-18), SCORING (T-12)
BEARS DEFENSE: OVERALL (29), RUSH (12), PASS (31), SCORING (30)
TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Vikings minus-9; Bears minus-4
VIKINGS PLAYER TO WATCH: WR Jordan Addison. The first-round draft pick from USC has touchdowns on three of his 19 receptions and figures to have a much bigger role with star Justin Jefferson out with a hamstring injury.
BEARS PLAYER TO WATCH: QB Justin Fields. Fields will try to keep it going coming off two of his best games as a passer. He has thrown for 617 yards and eight touchdowns with one interception in that stretch, compared to three TDs and four INTs in the first three weeks. Fields threw for 282 yards last week after setting a career high with 335 yards in a loss to Denver. He also had four touchdown passes to match a personal best set in the previous game against the Broncos.
KEY MATCHUP: Vikings QB Kirk Cousins against Chicago's secondary. Cousins will be without his best playmaker with star receiver and 2022 AP Offensive Player of the Year Justin Jefferson sidelined with a hamstring injury. Cousins has completed 69% of his passes for 2,618 yards and 16 TDs in 11 outings against the Bears. Chicago could be getting S Eddie Jackson (foot) and CB Jaylon Johnson (hamstring) back. Jackson has not played since Week 2. Johnson said this week he’s “very happy to be back so soon” after missing the past two games.
KEY INJURIES: Jefferson will miss at least four games after being placed on injured reserve. ... Addison (ankle) was limited in practice for the Vikings on Wednesday, as was OLB Marcus Davenport (elbow) and CB Akayleb Evans (knee). They’re all expected to play. KR/RB Kene Nwangwu (back) has been designated for return from injured reserve. ... Bears RB Khalil Herbert (ankle) left last week's game and was placed on injured reserve on Friday. C Lucas Patrick (concussion) and RB Roschon Johnson (concussion) also were hurt in the game. Expect D’Onta Foreman to get more carries. He’s been a healthy inactive lately.
SERIES NOTES: Minnesota has won four straight and five of six against Chicago.
STATS AND STUFF: The Vikings rank last in the NFL in turnover differential. ... DE Danielle Hunter is tied for second in the NFL with six of his team's 13 sacks. ... The Bears stopped a 14-game losing streak last week. ... Chicago is trying to win consecutive games for the first time since beating Seattle and the New York Giants in Weeks 16 and 17 of the 2021 season. ... Chicago — 0-2 at home — has lost nine straight at Soldier Field since beating Houston in Week 3 last season. ... Chicago had 451 yards against Washington after setting a season high with 471 the previous week against Denver. ... The Bears had five sacks against the Commanders' Sam Howell after getting a league-low two in the first four games, though most came when they had a comfortable lead. ... TE Cole Kmet goes for his third straight game with at least five receptions and a touchdown catch. ... DB Greg Stroman had his first career sack and third career interception last week.
FANTASY TIP: Chicago figures to lean heavily on DJ Moore after he had a career-high 230 yards on eight receptions against Washington. The only Bears player with more yards receiving in a game was Alshon Jeffery with 249 in an overtime loss at Minnesota on Dec. 1, 2013.
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