Bears Blitz

Published by Jack Jones on November 13, 2010
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

This Sunday the Minnesota Vikings will look to gain some ground in the NFC North when they go on the road to take on the Chicago Bears.

The Vikings pulled off a huge comeback to beat the Cardinals 27-24 in overtime last week, and it could have very well saved their season. The Bears came away with a 22-19 win over the Bills last week to snap a two game losing streak, but I wasn’t very impressed with how they played.

If you are thinking about betting on the game this weekend, the current NFL odds have the Vikings favored by one point over the Bears.

Minnesota (3-5): All the talk surround the Vikings right now is the relationship between the players and head coach Brad Childress. A few players came out and said how much they dislike the coach but are still going to play hard for the rest of the team, not exactly the chemistry you would like to see on a team trying to win a Super Bowl.

Brett Favre showed that while he may be old, he still knows how to make the big plays and win football games. Favre completed 36 of 47 attempts for a career-high 446 yards and two touchdowns last week, and for the first time this season got things going with wideout Bernard Berrian, who had nine catches for 89 yards. Berrian had just  nine catches all season coming into last week.

Wideout Percy Harvin also had a big game last week, catching nine passes for 126 yards, but is once again dealing with migraines and could end up being a game time decision this week. The Vikings also have one of the best running backs in the game in Adrian Peterson, and even though the Bears are allowing just 83 yards a game on the ground, you have to figures AP is a big factor in this one.

Defensively the Vikings finally started putting some pressure on the quarterback last week, and for this team to turn it around, they are going to have to continue doing that the rest of the season. The Bears have struggled stopping any pass rush this season, so you would think the Vikings would be all over the quarterback in this one.

Chicago (5-3): After starting the season 3-0, the Bears have won just two of their last five and are really struggling to get things done offensively. The line can’t block anybody, and with the way Cutler likes to hold onto the ball, it hasn’t been pretty.

The running game has also struggled to do anything. Last week the Bears went up against a Bills defense that had been torched on the ground the previous week, but only managed 105 yards on 31 attempts.

Minnesota ranks sixth in the NFL allowing just over 96 yards a game on the ground, and that could mean big trouble for the Bears offense. If they can’t find a way to keep the Vikings front four out of their backfield this week, they may find it hard to even get a first down in this one.

Looking at the Odds: Even with all the rumblings going on in the locker room, I think there is do doubt your money has to be on the Vikings to win this game and cover the spread. Minnesota should be able to control the Bears offense, and while the Vikings offense may struggle against a pretty good Bears defense, they should be able to easily score enough to win. My final score prediction is Minnesota 23, Chicago 13.

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