The Chicago Bears took out the Carolina Panthers in a historic fashion on Sunday, but this upcoming week against the Minnesota Vikings could prove to be all the more challenging. The Vikings defeated the Green Bay Packers in Week 1 in what could only be described as a catastrophic meltdown from Green Bay. The Vikings remained steady, maintained and applied consistent pressure, and ended up on top.
It was exactly the kind of showing any fan wants to see out of their team during Week 1, but with Kyler Murray entering into concussion protocol, does Carson Wentz hold the starting job moving forward?
Carson Wentz gives the Bears more to worry about than expected
Minnesota turned to Wentz after Kyler Murray went down early in Sunday's match. Wentz completed 12 of 19 passes for 133 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. It was an excellent display from the 33 year old quarterback, and it showed exactly why the Vikings turned his way rather than moving to JJ McCarthy.
Wentz may have thrown an excellent game, but it always helps when you have a top-caliber receiver in Justin Jefferson catching the ball. Jefferson received two of Wentz's three touchdowns, and finished the day with 92 total yards. He also caught eight of the nine passes thrown his way. That's exactly the kind of numbers a quarterback needs when he's stepping in.
Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason combined (with a little help from Kyler Murray) to put the Vikings rushing day over 100 yards, and two TDs deep. Jones had a few particular key plays against his former team that helped the Vikings along the way to victory.
The Bears stood up to worse damage than the Vikings did to the Packers, but it certainly wasn't pretty, and we wouldn't be talking about it the way we are if the Bears hadn't scored an excessive amount of points.
The Bears defense will need to get it's act together if they wish to top their NFC North opponent in the Vikings. Against Carolina, the Bears surrendered 478 yards, 37 points, and 7.7 yards per play. The Vikings managed to score more points than the Panthers did, on 200 less yards.
Wentz may not be the most intimidating quarterback Chicago will face this season, but Minnesota has already shown it can maximize the talent around him. If the Bears' defense repeats its Week 1 performance, the Vikings have more than enough firepower to make them pay.
| More Bears on DaWindyCity |
Add us as a preferred source on Google