Enemy Fan Forums: Chicago Bears

It's a short week for the Bears. Vikings up in 5 days.

We finish up the first quarter of the 2019 football season on Sunday. My gut feeling is that the winner of this game will be in the playoffs this year - and the loser will simply be the last-place team in the division.

It's a huge game for both teams.

The win against the Redskins was sweet. But the Vikes are not the "Skins. This is a bigboy team this year. Watching them play this year I see a powerful team that may even be capable of winning the division. Regardless, I am super excited about the game. It's a division game, in our house. That alone makes it a huge game.

I honestly believe we're going to win this one. Vikings have a hard time in Solider field and with the new found energy of our defense. They take us to the next level.

This is a yuge game.

I think this game is a tossup. I'm concerned about the OL. Hopefully, the run game gets going.

24-21 Bears. Good game on both sides of the ball for us!

17-13 Bears. I don't think the vikings can live just running the ball in this one and I see the quarterback giving the Bears a turnover or two... Probably would go the other way if the game was in Minnesota.

Hicks didn't practice today which makes him questionable at least for Sunday. If he can't play, we are down 2 starting DLs and in trouble.

+1

And after watching the tape of the 2nd half of the Washington game, the Vikes will be set to run the ball down our throats.

If we have to face that Minnesota rushing attack with Nick Williams and Abdullah Anderson at defensive end then I am not confident. They will get lead blockers on Smith and Trevathan and Cook will carve us to pieces.

I'd feel so much better about the game if Bullard was still on the team. He didn't make a lot of plays but he could at least keep the linebackers clean most of the time.

This is my lock of the week: Minnesota blows out the Bears. They’ve blown out teams with far better QBs than Trubisky. Curt Cousins goes off and proves that he can finally win a big game and Trubisky commits 5 turnovers against that great Vikings defense.

Vikings 38-17

Until Cousins can prove he can beat a winning team, only a dope would back that loser. Mitch beat the Vikings twice last year, and the second time IN Minnesota with convincing fashion.

Probably won't be a pretty win, but I gotta pick the Bears until Cousins proves he can beat a winning team. Even then, will this be his 5th victory against a winning team, if he pulls it off? 84 million for that?

Nothing has changed.

Bears defense is still elite.

Cousins still is about as anti-clutch as you can be.

Minnesota's run defense is pedestrian, but their pass defense is top 12. They're tied with the Bears for takeaways, and aren't going to be nearly as forgiving of mistakes as the Redskins were. Barr's status is up in the air, but Harrison Smith is always a bastard. Danielle Hunter, Everson Griffen, and Eric Kendricks are all having stellar seasons as well.

Vikings offense is coming around after a mediocre start. They took the second half off after torching Oakland last week, but still won handily. They're likely to miss WR Chad Beebe, so as long as you keep Adam Theilen under wraps, you could possibly force Cousins to make mistakes. Dalvin Cook will make you pay if the Bears overlook him. Between Irv Smith, Cook, and Kyle Rudolph, Cousins will have options, particularly if the Bears get fooled by some screens early.

This game will come down to which quarterback makes the fewest mistakes. Trubisky is going to be playing second fiddle Sunday, at least in an ideal world, to Cohen and Montgomery. Montgomery in particular seems to be the kind of back who can really frustrate a defense with how slippery he is, and Cohen has already established that when the ball is in his hands with space, he's going to do something special.

That's all contingent on how much the offensive line handles that Vikings front 7. The underwhelming play from Daniels at center is alarming, to say the least, and if Bobby Massie's vertigo spell is unresolved by Sunday afternoon, you really can't count on Cornelius Lucas to hold down the fort for long. Nagy's probably saving up some weird-ass gimmick plays for this offense to bust out in these division games, which may catch the Vikings off guard, as the last two Bears games have been very conservative by Nagy standards.

The Bears defense has frazzled Cousins before, and I don't see that changing. He's not nearly as good a quarterback as his contract might indicate, and the stakes this week are quite high. I don't see Cousins beating the Bears defense, but their modus operandi should be putting together exhausting, annoying drives that get to around midfield. Even if the Vikings don't score, the Bears offense has few, if any, skill at getting beyond midfield without the aid of penalties or turnovers. It's going to be a struggle.

I see the Bears surviving in overtime, but it's going to be a costly affair. A lot of these nagging injuries are going to announce themselves in a cutthroat game like this one will be.

Bears 23
Vikings 17

The Vikings are a good team and this will be a very tough game. Trubisky looked a little bit better vs the Redskins so lets hope that continues. He did make more of the same troubling mistakes though and the question has to be asked, will he ever stop making them? I think this game does nothing to help solve that problem as the Vikings D will be a tough go. On a short week the Bears best hope is to have this be a defensive slug fest. So....

Bears win! 12-10

The right side of the bears OL is a real problem, especially if Massie misses significant time. This is a game where they need to get Montgomery significant touches and mix Cohen and Patterson in.

I'll wait a bit to make a prediction, but it's an important game. I think the Redskins game was a nice confidence boost for the offense that they can build on.

The Bears defense can contain Cook enough even with Hicks limited and can cause Cousins problems, but they can't be on the field all day.

based on the first 3 weeks, if I'm Minnesota, I play a nickle defense all day and not even think of blitzing ... keep Trubisky in the pocket and stationary ... order your outside defensive front to make containment their top priority ... if Trubisky is going to beat you through the air, he has to do it as a contained pocket passer

if I am the Bears, once I see this defense, make counter plays a mainstay ... a little misdirection so the RB can make that inside move and break the outside containment ... and I would load up on quick slants and screen passes

this is going to be an interesting chess match in strategy ... there is enough film on both offenses to make a strong defensive effort to stop them ... the Bears need to do to Cousins what they did to Keenum - crush the pocket into him and nail him when he tries to move away ... Cousins isn't going to scare anyone with his running ability

this is going to come down to which QB can keep himself from being very stupid in a key situation ... which can make the fewer mistakes

I'll give the edge to the Bears and their defense ... I don't think they'll get 5 turnovers again, but I believe they will get a key one when it counts

Bears 27
Vikings 23

I'm just not all that worried about this game. Cousins and that offense is constantly hopeless against ANY kind of a defense. Especially a good pass rush. We beat them last year handedly each time, even despite Trubisky being poor in the first game.

Minnesota has won in Soldier Field only 3 times since the turn of the century. In 07, 15 and 17.

Their only hope is that Cook just has a field day and I don't think we let that happen.

Trubisky does enough and for the first time... We ride Montgomery in a big way. Much like we did with the run game and Howard in week 17 last year.

Bears 20
Vikings 13

This game gives me the creeps. Like Han Solo said, "I've got a bad feeling about this." Maybe I'm too geeked up about the Raider's game next week. Something about Minnesota's good pass defense making us too one dimensional on offense. Our defense however is fully capable of shutting down their offense. The secondary stepping up last week really helps. It would be really nice if they whipped their Dix out again and slapped the Vikings across the face with it.

I think our offense does just enough to win. Biscuit gets a TD and also throws a pick. Monty pulls us through with a TD and Eddy Dinero adds a FG. Cousins throws at least one pick and we force another turnover on a fumble.

At the end, the Vikings offense isn't able to do enough against the defense and that's the real reason we win this one. We get the win by shutting down a late 4th quarter drive with the Vikings near the red zone.

Bears 17
Vikings 13

OK gentlemen (and ladies) - we have had our preseason - regular season starts Sunday.

Bears need to show up on all phases of the game, look competent doing it and not let the foot off the throat if they get a lead.

We fall 2 games behind the division with the way everyone is playing and it's going to be a tough hole to dig out of.

For all the hand-wringing about Mitch, this is the game where the OL has to step up...because they have barely been average. Montgomery has a real opportunity to break out on Sunday and he can't do that if he's fighting through contact and running into the back of Kyle Long 2 yards behind the line of scrimmage.

They need to open holes so he can get to the 2nd level and use some of those nifty moves and make things happen in space.

The Bears need to maximize the running game so that, you know, the passing game and the RPOs and the fancy confusing formations actually start to work.

The Vikings passing game is awful. Cousins is only averaging 12 completions a game and they are 2nd to last in the NFL in passing. By contrast, they are 2nd in the NFL in rushing. Cook is literally the only weapon they have. Lucky for us, the Bears have arguably the best run defense in the NFL and haven't given up a rushing TD.

If the Bears can move the ball on the ground, take some shots down the field, play a controlled offense, and let the D do it's thing - the Bears get a convincing win.

Bears 31
Vikings 17

The Bears Oline is what has me worried more than anything else. IF they can block worth a damn, I think Monty, Cohen, and Patterson can all have some good runs...though I hope this is the game where Monty is given 15+ runs and at least 3 called passes. The sooner we establish him as a threat the sooner the heat reduces on Bisky. I think we need Miller and Burton to step up in this game as A. Rob will be covered hard core and we don't know if Gabriel will be cleared to play.

The Defense WILL sack Cousins some, and create some turnovers. I think Eddie Jackson gets to feed in this one as Cousins also has the problem of staring down WRs. My biggest worries are Thielen and Cooks. If those two can be accounted for on every play we have a good chance to win and keep building momentum and confidence for the savage schedule of our season.

Bears: 30
Vikings: 24

Seems like Mike Pettine wrote the book on how to beat Trubisky. Keep in him in the pocket and make him process the field. He hasn't shown consistency from this area and looked lost in week 1. If the Vikings let Trubisky get outside the pocket and make throws on the run, the Bears offense will have some success. If they are able to execute the game plan of keeping Mitch in the pocket, he's going to make some mistakes and potentially give the ball away.

This game comes down to the Bears ability to run the ball effectively and not have to rely on Mitch as much. It pains me to write that considering Mitch was the 2nd overall pick, you expect to win because of your QB not to hide him. We'll see how it pans out but right now my gut says the Bears offense will need a strong ground game to take pressure of Mitch. Against this Vikings defense, that's a tall task. Otherwise it's going to be another struggle.

Conversely, on the defensive side of the ball, the Bears run defense will need to remain stout. The Vikings offense has been very successful on the ground with Cook. He's been their offense. Bears need to shut him down and let Cousins try and win the game. Same type of gameplan that the Vikings will likely use against the Bears offense.

All in all, my intuition tells me:

Vikings 17
Bears 12

I just don't have a whole lot of confidence in the Bears offense to execute consistently. I hope they prove me wrong.

This is an important game, so I hope I'm wrong, but I'm not seeing it right now from the offense. Minnesota hasn't looked fantastic, either, but I think they make more plays on offense and end up on the winning side. I think the defense or special teams has to score a TD in order to win this one.

Vikings 17
Bears 13

I'm very worried about this game, and if I were betting with my head alone I'd have to pick the Vikings. That said, if Trevathan and Roquon can shut down the outside zone runs and Mitchy can repeat his performance from Monday then we should come out ok. But those are big if's.

Bears 24
Vikings 20

Since the first game the Bears offensive line had pass blocked pretty damned well. Trubisky hasn’t had consistent pressure and most of his times breaking the pocket have been designed.

The Bears should do what they did in the first half of the Washington game. Move Mitch around a lot, use short passes as an extension of the run game. Hope that all that side to side motion opens some lanes for the running game.

Thank god its at soldier where the vikings havent been great in recent seasons.

I see Thielen probably getting 2 tds, maybe their RB cook as well as a FG.

Viqueens: 24
Bears: 28

Hoping our injured players can all make a quick enough recovery to have an impact in this game, Hicks especially. But I think we turn up confident after the MNF victory and get a couple of important turnovers that lead to scores, i think we have Cousin's number.

It's hard to count the Bears out of any game with their defense. I feel like as long as the offense doesn't completely melt down, and can put 17-20 points on the board, that we will have the chance to win every game we play. I see the Bears offense trending in the right direction. They won't be great, but they will put enough points on the board to win.

I think Cousins implodes after Dalvin Cook is shut down by the Bears defense. Both Fuller and Jackson have INT's. Montgomery goes for 90 yards and a TD. Biscuits throws for another to Robinson, and Piniero kicks three FG's.

Bears - 23
Vikings - 13

Bear Down!!

This game could go so many different ways, it's silly. It could be a 3-0 field position punt fest taffy pull. Or with the defenses scoring and creating short fields with turnovers, it could be a 31-30 back and forth scoring extravaganza.

I really don't know who to take. Minny has relied on Cook and an emphasized run game. But our run D is very good and if you're Pagano, you take away the run and make Cousins beat you. But Cousins isn't awful and he has some good targets to throw to, even if their passing game hasn't been very good thus far. The Bears offense is really going to struggle against their rejuvenated defense. We could see the boo birds make another appearance at home. Harrison Smith scares me and I see them taking a page out of the Packers playbook and play to keep Mitch in the pocket and make him beat them. The Vikings get revenge for the beat down we put on them to knock them out of the playoffs last year.

Vikings 21
Bears 20

I don't think we get the chance to go into prevent early and our D produces at a high level throughout. We should be able to frustrate Cousins and when was the last time anyone ran all over us?

Now would be a good time for the run game to pop off, let's have a nice 100 yards plus game for Monty. Trubisky likely won't have an amazing game against this defence but could bag a touchdown, an interception and an 80 odd QB rating.

Bears 27, Vikings 10.

We win but it’s a mammoth fight. Two heavyweights slogging it out

Bears 16
Vikings 13

Zimmer will want revenge. The Bears ruined their season last year.

Very solid defense. Conservatives offense relying more on the run, Dalvin Cook's playing at an all-pro level. 2 great WRs and a great TE. It’s a must win but will be a tough and close game.