Do the Vikes find back to their old strength in Chicago?
The 6th day of the National Football League will see a duel between the Chicago Bears and the Minnesota Vikings. Normally, the guests should dominate this game, but the results of the last weeks were rather worrying. On the other hand, the home side’s start to the season was not particularly good either, so the visiting team still remains favored. For this reason, the bookmakers’ betting odds between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings also tend to favor an away win.
Minnesota is favored in this duel, but the injury of Justin Jefferson and the rumors of a trade of Kirk Cousins have caused turmoil in the team. In addition, the Bears were able to celebrate their first win of the season last weekend and will therefore go into this duel with a lot of self-confidence. Therefore, we can well understand that between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings the odds of the bookmakers are quite close together.
We recommend betting on a Jordan Addison touchdown between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings. With Justin Jefferson out, the Vikes’ No. 3 option in the passing game is clearly the first pick. With three touchdowns in the first five games, the rookie has already attracted attention and has been one of the most interesting newcomers of the season so far. The best odds for this bet can be found at Bet365, probably the best-known bookmaker in the German-speaking world.
Kickoff of this game is on Sunday at 19:00 clock in Soldier Field in Chicago. The game can be followed live and in full length on DAZN.
Chicago Bears – stats & current form
Chicago, as expected, is in last place in the NFC North, picking up where they left off in the weak preseason. For this reason, Matt Nagy’s team is also the clear underdog in this division and will most likely miss the playoffs.
Last weekend, however, the Bears were able to celebrate their first win of the season, defeating the Washington Commanders by a clear 40:20. With another success, the hosts could perhaps turn things around and turn the season into a positive one after all.
Rise in performance
Justin Fields has improved significantly from the preseason and ranks 13th league-wide with 1143 yards.In addition, the Bears quarterback has already scored eleven passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. That makes him one of the most effective players at his position, and so far he’s only outplayed by Kirk Cousins and Josh Allen. Still, he shouldn’t rest on his laurels, as his pass rate of just 61.8% is very weak.
Injury Worries
Before the game against the Minnesota Vikings, the Bears have to compensate for some injuries, especially on offense. Thereby the position of the running back is hit hard, because with Khalil Herbert, Roschan Johnson and Travis Homer three players are still questionable for the upcoming game. In addition, there is also a question mark behind the use of tight end Cole Kmet, so that the O-line of Chicago is heavily decimated.
Problems in the Offense
With all the breakdowns, the Bears’ running game will have to lose some quality and won’t be as strong as it usually is. That could have serious consequences for Chicago, as Matt Nagy’s team ranks ninth in the league in rushing, while it’s only good enough for 18th in passing. It would be no surprise, therefore, if the home side’s O-line struggles quite a bit and rarely gets on the scoreboard.
Weak Defense
The Bears feature one of the weakest defenses in the National Football League, allowing an average of 31.4 points. At the same time, Matt Nagy’s team has had major problems, especially against the passing game, allowing an average of 286 passing yards. This is exactly where the Minnesota Vikings’ strength lies, which significantly reduces the home side’s chances of winning.
Key players for the Chicago Bears:
- QB: Justin Fields
- RB: D’Onta Foreman
- WR: DJ Moore
- LB: T.J. Edwards
- K: Cairo Santos
Minnesota Vikings – stats & recent form
The start of the season went far from optimal for Minnesota, as the visitors lost as many games after just five matchdays as they did in the entire Regular Season last year. As a result, the Vikes are in third place in the NFC North and already well behind the Detroit Lions.
The Vikings’ only win so far came in week four in a 21-13 win over the Carolina Panthers. In the game against the Chicago Bears, the visiting team is under pressure and must win a game to save the season.
Trade Rumor
Kirk Cousins is purely statistically one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL right now. In the first five games, the veteran collected 1498 passing yards and threw 13 touchdown passes. After the weak start, however, the club’s management assumes that the team will miss the playoffs, so that a departure of Cousins is suddenly being discussed. However, that’s not because of his performance, but rather his age. So the thought now is to call off the season early, find a young replacement and guarantee him playing time.
Injury misfortune
Justin Jefferson is one of the best players at his position and was already at 571 receiving yards after five days of play. However, the wide receiver suffered a serious injury last weekend and is expected to be out for weeks. This puts the focus on two other players on the O-line. One is tight end T.J. Hockenson, and the other is rookie Jordan Addison. Together, the two offensive players have already amassed 503 yards and five touchdowns.
Lights and Shadows
We’ve already touched on Kirk Cousins’ good performance, and it’s clearly reflected in the Vikes’ passing game. Averaging 281.6 passing yards per game, Minnesota boasts the second-best O-line in the National Football League in that category. However, this is offset by the weak running game, as the Vikings are one of the weakest teams in the league, averaging just 80.8 rushing yards.
Lack of consistency
Defensively, the guests clearly have their weak point. On average, Mike Zimmer’s team allows 24.4 points and that is simply too much for the Vikings’ ambitions. However, we also have to take a closer look at the strength of the D-Line, because on average they only allow 102.4 rushing yards to their opponents. That could be a deciding factor against the Bears’ good running game to get their second win of the season.
Key Minnesota Vikings players:
- QB: Kirk Cousins
- RB: Alexander Mattison
- WR: Jordan Addison
- TE: T.J. Hockenson
- K: Greg Joseph
Chicago Bears – Minnesota Vikings head-to-head comparison / H2H record
The head-to-head comparison between the two teams goes to the visiting team. Minnesota won 64 duels against Chicago, while the Bears are currently at 52 wins. Currently, the Vikings are even at a streak of four straight wins, so they are also favored. For this reason, our prediction between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings goes more in the direction of an away win. However, due to the current unrest in the guest camp, we refrain from a win bet in our main tip.
Chicago Bears – Minnesota Vikings Tip
We are playing the under 47.5 points in the game tip between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings. Both offenses are currently plagued by injury concerns and will therefore repeatedly have problems finding their way into the end zone. This will affect the home side in particular, as they will not be able to run the ball as usual. We wouldn’t be surprised to see a low-scoring game
Alternatively, between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings, we recommend odds for a win for the visiting team. Despite the injury to Justin Jefferson, the Vikes should have the advantage across the board. In addition, the home side has big problems against the passing game and that’s where the visitors’ strength lies. In sum, there is very little to be said for a win for the hosts.
