One play.
All night, the Chicago Bears needed the offense to make one play against the Minnesota Vikings. They refused
Repeatedly, the Bears’ defense performed excellently, making stops, forcing turnovers, earning short fields, and doing all they could to provide their offense with an opportunity to triumph. However, each time, their efforts were met with a stark display of incompetence.
After Joshua Dobbs finally woke the slumbering Vikings offense for a touchdown to give Minnesota a 10-9 lead, another head-shaking Chicago loss felt inevitable. It felt doubly so after Justin Fields fumbled for the second consecutive drive, turning a potential two-score lead into a Minnesota first down away from a 10-9 loss.
However, the defense stood strong once again, compelling a punt.
Finally, after what seemed like an endless series of 45,000 bubble screens, futile backfoot throws, and runs straight into the grips of defenders, the Bears executed a successful play.
Facing third-and-10, Fields had time, as the blitz-happy Brian Flores dropped his defense into coverage and found D.J. Moore for the game’s biggest play, a 36-yard-gain to set up a chip-shot game-winning field goal. Bears 12, Vikings 10.
“After the victory, Fields shared his appreciation for his team, stating, “The guys never wavered; they stuck by me and believed in me. I am particularly grateful to the guys in the locker room. Our defense did an excellent job reclaiming the ball for that final drive, and the offense executed the plays exceptionally well,” according to the official transcript. He added, “It felt great. We managed to navigate through the game’s adversities, highs and lows. The guys maintained a balanced attitude, neither too excited nor too despondent. We fought hard and ultimately finished strong – it was a good experience.”
Despite enjoying excellent field position throughout the game, Fields and the Bears’ offense were unable to score a touchdown. They managed to generate only 4.7 yards per play on 68 plays.
Luke Getsy, the offensive coordinator, responded to the aggressive defense of the Vikings with screens and quick throws, but this strategy soon proved unsuccessful. According to Next Gen Stats, Fields targeted 43.2 percent of his passes at or behind the line of scrimmage, marking the highest rate in a game by any quarterback in 2023 with a minimum of 20 attempts. However, with an average air yard per attempt of 2.7, Fields reached the lowest point in his career.
Fields has many shortcomings, but creating such a strategy for that kind of quarterback is akin to having a Ferrari and merely driving it in circles in a cul-de-sac. What is the purpose, really?
For the second week in a row, it seemed the Bears were set to squander a defense effort that resulted in four turnovers. Fields’ second fumble looked to confirm Chicago’s impending defeat. The struggling Chicago offense shares the blame, from poor play-calling to a leaky offensive line, lack of consistency and the quarterback’s missed plays. Yet, even the most staunch supporter of Fields must admit that the consecutive fumbles were entirely the quarterback’s fault.
“Firstly, I can’t afford to fumble,” Fields stated. “I need to improve my ball security. It’s ironic because I believe Roschon (Johnson) fumbled a play or two before my first fumble. I even told him, ‘Ball security is paramount at the moment.’ Yet, two plays later, I fumbled and then the second fumble was like a back breaker.”
Fortunately for Fields, his defense finally gave him another opportunity to make a significant play.
The quarterback expressed relief, saying, “We led at halftime, thanks to our defense’s stellar performance, despite our offense starting slower than we had hoped. But what happened in the first half wasn’t as important as how we started and finished the second half. Our message was to consistently finish the game strong, as we had failed to do this on several occasions this season. Looking back, I’m proud of everyone for persevering until the end, regardless of the circumstances, and ultimately securing the win.”
A week after failing to secure a win against a division rival, Matt Eberflus’s team finally achieved victory in an NFC North match. This marked their first win since 2021 and the first under the coach’s leadership.
