Brian Flores spent the week being described by Chicago’s coaches and players as a difficult problem to solve.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams called preparing for Flores a “mental war.” Coach Ben Johnson said Minnesota’s coordinator always has something new waiting for an opponent. The Bears entered Sunday’s matchup at Soldier Field after scoring 59 points and piling up 552 yards in their opener.
Then Flores’ defense held them to three points.
The Vikings turned a wet, messy NFC North game into a 9-3 victory behind an unrelenting defensive performance, three Will Reichard field goals and a final-play sack by Dallas Turner. Minnesota is 2-0, has beaten both division opponents to open the season and has now won seven consecutive games at Soldier Field.
The final score was the opposite of what either team produced in Week 1. Minnesota scored 39 points against Green Bay. Chicago scored 59 against Carolina. Neither offense reached the end zone Sunday, but the Vikings were far more equipped to win that kind of game.
Flores’ unit limited the Bears to 297 yards, forced two takeaways, produced four sacks and stopped Chicago on all three of its red-zone possessions. The Bears converted only five of 15 third downs and finished with 4.8 yards per play after averaging 7.9 in Week 1.
The game ended with the player who has quickly become the centerpiece of Minnesota’s pass rush.
Chicago backup Tyson Bagent had driven the Bears from their own 35-yard line to the Vikings’ 12 in the final minute. After two incompletions, officials ruled that one second remained, giving Bagent one final chance to find the end zone.
Instead, Turner drove through sophomore tight end Colston Loveland and brought Bagent down for his second sack of the day.
Turner finished with five tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss and four quarterback hits. He has three sacks through two games, and his disruptive Week 1 performance against Green Bay was not a one-game breakout.
“I feel like, just preparing myself for these moments, ever since I was in college,” Turner said. “I feel like it’s very important, just keep on showing up every single day to execute at a high level.”
Turner was not alone.
Blake Cashman led Minnesota with 10 tackles and added a sack. Andrew Van Ginkel had a sack and three quarterback hits. Byron Murphy Jr. intercepted Williams in the first quarter, and Jalen Redmond delivered the game’s most important defensive play in the third.
The Bears opened the second half with their best drive of the day. Williams escaped pressure, rolled back across the field and found Kalif Raymond near the sideline to set up first-and-goal at the Minnesota 1.
Chicago had a chance to take its first lead, but Redmond had other ideas.
On the next snap, he punched the ball loose from D’Andre Swift at the goal line. Isaiah Rodgers recovered at the 1, preserving Minnesota’s 6-3 lead and changing the tenor of the afternoon.
The Vikings’ offense did not produce much margin for error. Carson Wentz, starting for Kyler Murray, completed 11 of 20 passes for 143 yards and took three sacks. The conditions were difficult, but Minnesota also left opportunities on the field. Wentz escaped what could have been an early interception when Bears linebacker Devin Bush dropped a pass in the red zone, and a high snap from Blake Brandel created another ugly moment.
Still, Wentz avoided an official turnover and made enough throws to let Minnesota’s defense dictate the game.
His first pass was a 30-yard completion to Justin Jefferson, who moved past Randy Moss into second place on the Vikings’ all-time receptions list. Jefferson finished with three catches for 55 yards. Aaron Jones carried the offense from there.
With Jordan Mason on injured reserve, Jones took 23 carries for 105 yards. He consistently found positive gains in a game that demanded patience, and his 20-yard run was Minnesota’s longest rushing play.
Reichard handled the scoring. He converted kicks from 35, 49 and 39 yards, while rookie punter Brett Thorson helped Minnesota manage the field-position battle with six punts for 297 yards and two inside the 20.
The Bears had another chance to tie the game after Williams left with a right hamstring injury in the fourth quarter. On first-and-goal from the Minnesota 6, Williams scrambled left, slid down untouched and immediately grabbed at his leg. He was helped off and later carted to the locker room.
Bagent entered, but the Bears could not finish the possession. After an incomplete pass on third down, Cairo Santos came on for a 23-yard field goal that would have tied the game.
Rodgers exploded around the edge and blocked it.
It was the second time Rodgers kept Chicago off the scoreboard in the red zone. He also nearly ended the final drive himself, briefly appearing to intercept a Bagent pass before replay showed that his heels landed out of bounds.
Minnesota then drove for Reichard’s final field goal, giving Bagent the six-point deficit and the final desperate march that Turner ended.
The Bears had looked explosive, varied and nearly unstoppable one week earlier. Flores turned their second game into a test of patience, protection and execution — then watched his defense win each of the moments that mattered most.
The Vikings will gladly take an ugly win in Chicago.
Especially when their defense made it look so complete.
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