Bears Need to Win to Keep Playoff Hopes Alive


The Bears played perhaps their most complete game in two years, breaking a six-game losing streak last week against Houston

Up next, the Bears host the Minnesota Vikings as they fight to keep their faint hopes of a wild card spot alive.

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Former Bears offensive lineman James “Big Cat” Williams joins us to offer three key takes on that upcoming clash against the Vikings.

1. The revamped offensive line is going to be tested a little more this week against the Minnesota Vikings. The shuffling of the offensive line has given the Bears something to build on. By inserting Sam Mustipher at center and Alex Bars into the right guard spot and then moving Cody Whitehair to left guard and Germain Ifedi out to the right tackle position has given them something to build on for the last three games of the regular season. 

2. Offensive coach Bill Lazor must continue to call plays that allow quarterback Mitch Trubisky to be at his best. The last two weeks they found a package that works for not only Trubisky but also the patched up offensive line. We’ve seen more high- and low-route combinations paired with getting Trubisky out of the pocket so that he only has to read half of the field instead of the whole thing. Against Detroit and the Texans, Trubisky averaged around 8.0 yards per pass and threw four touchdowns and no interceptions. 

3. When the Bears and the Vikings met the first time this season, the defense focused on stopping Vikings running back Dalvin Cook and they did a decent job holding him to 96 yards on 30 carries. For the second week in a row, the defense will have the chance to take advantage of an opponent that has struggled protecting their quarterback. The Vikings have given up 10 sacks in their last two games against Tampa and the Jaguars. If the offense can put up some points early, the defense should be able to pin their ears back and get after Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins.

Prediction: Bears 23, Vikings 17


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