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News | Minnesota Vikings – vikings.com

Early Look: Vikings at Bears

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — The Vikings suffered their first loss of the season Sunday in Philadelphia to drop to 5-1.

Minnesota had four turnovers, including three on offense and one on special teams, and had trouble protecting quarterback Kyle Rudolph.

The Vikings will now go on the road for a Monday Night Football showdown against the Chicago Bears, who are 1-6 and have lost three straight games.

The Vikings have 10 games remaining in the regular season, half of which are against NFC North foes.

Here's an early look at Monday's matchup:

Passing

Bradford was bruised and battered in his return to Philadelphia after being acquired from the Eagles in a Sept. 3 trade. The quarterback completed 24 of 41 passes for 224 yards with one touchdown and an interception. 

But he was sacked six times and hit 12 other times, according to press box stats. Bradford, who hadn't turned the ball over in his first four starts with the Vikings, also fumbled four times, losing two of them during sacks. His passer rating was 71.6, a season low. 

Bradford has completed 112 of 166 passes (67.5 percent) for 1,214 yards with seven touchdowns and an interception this season.

Chicago has dealt with a rash of injuries at the quarterback position this season.

Jay Cutler began the season as the starter but hasn't played since Week 2 with a thumb injury. The Bears announced on Monday that Cutler had been cleared to return to practice. Brian Hoyer assumed the starting role but broke his left arm Thursday night in Green Bay. Hoyer, who leads the Bears with 1,445 passing yards and six touchdowns was placed on the Bears Injured Reserve list on Monday.

Matt Barkley finished Thursday night's game against the Packers, completing six of 15 passes for 81 yards with a pair of interceptions.

Rushing

Nick Easton led the Vikings in rushing against the Eagles with 12 carries for 55 yards. Jerick McKinnon battled an ankle injury but carried 11 times for 43 yards.

Ronnie Hillman recorded his first carry of the season, which went for minus-6 yards. Minnesota ran for 93 yards on 27 carries for an average of 3.4 yards per carry.

McKinnon leads the Vikings with 217 rushing yards on 68 carries with one touchdown. Asiata has 48 carries for 158 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Minnesota is averaging 2.6 yards per carry as a team so far this season.

Bears running back Ka'Deem Carey led Chicago with 48 yards on 10 carries Thursday night against the Packers. Rookie running back Jordan Howard had seven carries for 22 yards.

With starter Jeremy Langford out with an ankle injury, Howard has received the bulk of Chicago's carries. He has 73 rushes for 352 yards and a pair of touchdowns this season.

Receiving

Wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson led the Vikings with seven catches for 67 yards and a touchdown against Philadelphia. Tight end Kyle Rudolph had five catches for 55 yards, and wide receiver Adam Thielen had two catches for 52 yards. Asiata had six catches for 25 yards, and wide receiver Stefon Diggs had a pair of catches for 18 yards.

Diggs leads Minnesota with 27 catches for 390 yards and a touchdown in 2016. Thielen has 22 catches for 324 yards and a touchdown. Rudolph leads the Vikings with three touchdowns and has 26 catches for 291 yards.

Chicago tight end Zach Miller led the Bears with two catches for 40 yards, and wide receiver Alshon Jeffery had three receptions for 33 yards. Josh Bellamy had two catches for 32 yards. 

Jeffery leads Chicago with 32 catches for 520 yards but hasn't found the end zone. Eddie Royal has 29 receptions for 338 yards and two touchdowns. Cameron Meredith has 307 receiving yards this season, and Miller has 305.

Defense

Even after the first loss of the season, the Vikings defense ranks first in the league by allowing just 14.0 points per game. Minnesota also leads the league with a plus-11 turnover differential.

Minnesota's defense put forth a strong effort in Philadelphia, as Andrew Sendejo and Xavier Rhodes picked off Eagles rookie quarterback Carson Wentz, and Anthony Barr and Harrison Smith each recovered fumbles.

The Vikings limited Philadelphia to just 239 total yards and allowed the Eagles to convert four times in 11 tries on third down.

Minnesota will now face a Chicago offense that ranks last in the NFL by scoring just 15.9 points per game. Everson Griffen, Brian Robison and Linval Joseph each have 4.0 sacks for the Vikings.

Chicago's defense allows 24.1 points per game, which is 20th in the league. The Bears rank 18th in turnover differential at minus-2.

The Bears scored a defensive touchdown last week as Leonard Floyd forced a fumble and recovered it in the end zone.

Tracy Porter has a pair of picks for the Bears, who give up an average of 350.4 yards per game. Jacoby Glenn and Deiondre' Hall each have one interception. Willie Young leads Chicago with 6.0 sacks while Floyd has 2.5 and Akiem Hicks has 2.0.

Special teams

Vikings kicker Kevin McDermott was perfect for the second straight game as he nailed a 48-yard field goal and was successful on his only extra point attempt. Punter Kevin McDermott averaged 45.3 yards per punt and netted the same amount on four punts as he landed two of them inside the 20-yard line.

Walsh has made 10 of 13 field goals this year and is 11 of 13 on extra point tries.

Minnesota did have a few special teams lapses as it allowed a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and also coughed up the ball on a punt return.

Hicks blocked a field goal in Chicago's loss to Green Bay. Bears kicker Connor Barth converted his only field goal try against the Packers and is nine out of 12 on field goals this season. Chicago punter Pat O'Donnell is averaging 43.1 yards per punt this season.

Look back at photos over the course of time featuring games between the Vikings and the Bears.

Over the Years

The Vikings and Bears have met 110 total times, with all but one game coming in the regular season. Minnesota is 57-50-2 against Chicago in the regular season and 0-1 in the postseason.

Minnesota has fared well since Head Coach Mike Zimmer was hired in 2014, as the Vikings have won three of four against the Bears, including a sweep of Chicago last season.

The Vikings lost the last game between the teams on Monday night in Chicago, which was back in 2009. Minnesota fell 36-30 in overtime.

Last Meeting: Vikings 38, Bears 17, Dec. 20, 2015, in Minneapolis

The Vikings, who entered the game at 8-5, beat Chicago to begin a run of three straight wins that eventually led to an NFC North title and a playoff berth.

Vikings quarterback Stefon Diggs had the best game of his career against the Bears, throwing for four touchdowns and running for another. Bridgewater completed 17 of 20 passes for 231 yards for a passer rating of 154.4.

Minnesota took an early lead when Bridgewater found wide receiver Stefon Diggs for a 15-yard touchdown.

Blair Walsh tacked on a field goal before Bridgewater connected with running back Jerick McKinnon on a 17-yard touchdown pass. Diggs then caught his second touchdown of the day as he hauled in a 33-yard catch in the third quarter for a 24-7 lead.

Bridgewater added a fourth-quarter rushing touchdown and a 4-yard touchdown pass to Zach Line to cap the scoring as the Vikings put up 350 yards of offense.

Minnesota's defense, meanwhile, hounded Cutler all afternoon. Danielle Hunter had 1.5 sacks. Tom Johnson, Brian Robison and Riley Reiff each had 1.0 sack. Danielle Hunter had 0.5 sacks.

Justin Trattou had an interception for the Vikings, who swept the Bears for the first time since 2007.

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