On Monday, the Chicago Bears did something strange: defeat the Minnesota Vikings 12-10 despite failing to score a single touchdown, whether in the air or on the ground.
Cairo Santos was easily the hero of the game, making four out of five field goal attempts, and he has Justin Fields to thank for the last one, as the third-year quarterback set it up with this massive third-down conversion to DJ Moore:
However, that was apparently not enough for the team's fans, who still want offensive coordinator Luke Getsy removed:
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Defense helps Bears in offensively limited game
Another factor that helped the Chicago Bears win was their defense.
Justin Fields was not the best player on the field, losing two fourth-quarter fumbles and being sacked thrice, but his counterpart Joshua Dobbs managed to be even worse, despite throwing for the game's only touchdown.
The Bears got four interceptions and two sacks out of the journeyman, and they also forced a massive three-and-out in what turned out to be his penultimate drive, which led to the third-down conversion and game-winning kick.
Fields could not help but praise the defense:
"My teammates and coaches stayed behind me and the defense did a great job of getting the offense the ball back. I couldn't really change the past so we were focused on the future moments."
However, he also sees plenty of room for more visible offensive progress:
"It got a little bit rocky on those two fumbles so I had to bounce back. Played good enough to get the W but there's definitely room for improvement."
Could Vikings' loss to Bears doom their playoff hopes?
Meanwhile, the Minnesota Vikings will be left ruing what could have been.
They had finally overcome a game-long offensive drought when Josh Dobbs found tight end TJ Hockenson at the endzone:
The game appeared to be theirs for the taking when they caused Justin Fields to lose the ball for the second time:
Unfortunately, nothing came out of the Vikings' drive, and a short time later Fields redeemed himself.
This now leaves the Vikings at 6-6 before their bye week, but with the New Orleans Saints, Los Angeles Rams and Green Bay Packers just one win behind, they must defeat the Las Vegas Raiders upon their return.
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