Bears at Vikings Depth Chart Preview W12 '23
Nov 27, 2023 11:59:38 GMT -6
Funkytown and FSUVike like this
Post by Danchat on Nov 27, 2023 11:59:38 GMT -6
With the winning streak broken, it's imperative that the Vikings avoid a losing streak and continue to beat the bad opponents on their schedule en route to the playoffs. Can they dispatch the Bears, or will they plummet back into the mire that this team began in the first few weeks?
Line: Vikings -3
Super Sim Calculated Line: Vikings -3.5
Injury Report
Bears
T Borom - Out
RB Foreman - Out
ILB Sewell - Out
CB Stevenson - Out
Vikings
WR Jefferson - Out
DT Tonga - Questionable
CB Evans - Questionable
*My Thoughts*
We encounter the Bears again, who continue to stack losses up. It helped that they were starting UDFA Tyson Bagent, who looked like a passable backup QB but was certainly a downgrade from Fields. Especially since the Bears coaching staff made the Captain Obvious realization that Fields is a really good runner and they finally let him lose last week. However, he's still a crappy passer and can easily be overwhelmed by blitzes as he struggles with setting protections. Flores should have another field day, alongside Bear-killer DJ Wonnum.
This time we'll get to see Khalil Herbert instead of Foreman. While he's an underrated back, the Vikings run defense has been fantastic and should be able to shut him and Johnson down. It doesn't help that their OL has been constantly churning members. LT Jones is back and isn't playing quite as well as he did his rookie year. Longtime G/C Whitehair was benched in the first Vikings game and his play has fallen off a cliff despite being a consistently good blocker for 6 years prior. They do have Jenkins who is ranking highly, but C Patrick is a glorified backup who can be exploited in pass pro. Davis is also not playing up to snuff compared to his Titans days, while rookie RT Wright has been middling, which isn't odd for a rookie at a difficult position.
At receiver, Moore is still a stud but Bagent didn't get him the ball enough. He can easily beat any CB the Vikings have, but the issue is that they don't have a secondary receiver who can punish you for doubling him. Mooney is not playing up to his 2021 standard of play, while St. Brown is a career backup and Scott has had rookie struggles. Kmet has recently stepped up his play and is a 'good enough' receiver. Marcedes Lewis is an ageless wonder, getting close to 40 years old but continues to be a superb blocker.
Defensively, the Bears run defense is shockingly great as of late. Their DTs and LBs have been the catalyst for big improvements, with Billings and Dexter dominating and the Edmunds/Edwards combo consistently making big tackles. The Vikings aren't going to score any points if they continue to pound Mattison down the middle like they did Week 5. This is despite Ngakoue's cataclysmically low run defense grades, and he's got a running mate in Montez Sweat who is a massive upgrade in generating pressure. He's not a shabby run defender either, so while that trade was questionable for the pick they gave up, this DL is finally starting to show promise.
At LB, Edwards continues to get great grades from PFF while Edmunds is still getting dogged by them. Mr. $18M a year Edmunds' coverage grades have plummeted and his missed tackle rate has inflated up to 12%. Edwards, who inexplicably only got $6.5M a year on the market, has elite run stopping grades but has give up 47 passes in coverage. Sanborn has been a sneaky good run stopper, but is also having problems in coverage.
The secondary is where you can attack the Bears. Jaylon Johnson is having a big year, but that's about it for the positives. Gordon has been a disaster and can be picked upon for easy yardage, while their nickel / 3rd CB has been a rotational of guys who haven't played well. Jackson is on the decline, as he's not the playmaker he used to be. Brisker is having a better sophomore year as he's been an elite tackler, but is still rough in coverage.
Prediction: Vikings 20, Bears 17
Who's ready for another close, one-score game? The Bears have been hanging around lately and don't look like the lame ducks they were earlier in the season, but they're still finding ways to lose games. I think that's what happens here, as Fields makes some big plays but they can't sustain a lead due to not running the ball well and Fields getting sacked. Offensively, the Vikings need Dobbs to take advantage of all of the coverage problems the Bears defense has, while finding a way to keep the run game a threat but not relying on it because of how they likely won't have much efficiency. I suspect the offense starts out slow, but in the second half Dobbs will hit Hockenson and Addison for big plays and end up pulling through.
Any thoughts?
Line: Vikings -3
Super Sim Calculated Line: Vikings -3.5
Injury Report
Bears
T Borom - Out
RB Foreman - Out
ILB Sewell - Out
CB Stevenson - Out
Vikings
WR Jefferson - Out
DT Tonga - Questionable
CB Evans - Questionable
*My Thoughts*
We encounter the Bears again, who continue to stack losses up. It helped that they were starting UDFA Tyson Bagent, who looked like a passable backup QB but was certainly a downgrade from Fields. Especially since the Bears coaching staff made the Captain Obvious realization that Fields is a really good runner and they finally let him lose last week. However, he's still a crappy passer and can easily be overwhelmed by blitzes as he struggles with setting protections. Flores should have another field day, alongside Bear-killer DJ Wonnum.
This time we'll get to see Khalil Herbert instead of Foreman. While he's an underrated back, the Vikings run defense has been fantastic and should be able to shut him and Johnson down. It doesn't help that their OL has been constantly churning members. LT Jones is back and isn't playing quite as well as he did his rookie year. Longtime G/C Whitehair was benched in the first Vikings game and his play has fallen off a cliff despite being a consistently good blocker for 6 years prior. They do have Jenkins who is ranking highly, but C Patrick is a glorified backup who can be exploited in pass pro. Davis is also not playing up to snuff compared to his Titans days, while rookie RT Wright has been middling, which isn't odd for a rookie at a difficult position.
At receiver, Moore is still a stud but Bagent didn't get him the ball enough. He can easily beat any CB the Vikings have, but the issue is that they don't have a secondary receiver who can punish you for doubling him. Mooney is not playing up to his 2021 standard of play, while St. Brown is a career backup and Scott has had rookie struggles. Kmet has recently stepped up his play and is a 'good enough' receiver. Marcedes Lewis is an ageless wonder, getting close to 40 years old but continues to be a superb blocker.
Defensively, the Bears run defense is shockingly great as of late. Their DTs and LBs have been the catalyst for big improvements, with Billings and Dexter dominating and the Edmunds/Edwards combo consistently making big tackles. The Vikings aren't going to score any points if they continue to pound Mattison down the middle like they did Week 5. This is despite Ngakoue's cataclysmically low run defense grades, and he's got a running mate in Montez Sweat who is a massive upgrade in generating pressure. He's not a shabby run defender either, so while that trade was questionable for the pick they gave up, this DL is finally starting to show promise.
At LB, Edwards continues to get great grades from PFF while Edmunds is still getting dogged by them. Mr. $18M a year Edmunds' coverage grades have plummeted and his missed tackle rate has inflated up to 12%. Edwards, who inexplicably only got $6.5M a year on the market, has elite run stopping grades but has give up 47 passes in coverage. Sanborn has been a sneaky good run stopper, but is also having problems in coverage.
The secondary is where you can attack the Bears. Jaylon Johnson is having a big year, but that's about it for the positives. Gordon has been a disaster and can be picked upon for easy yardage, while their nickel / 3rd CB has been a rotational of guys who haven't played well. Jackson is on the decline, as he's not the playmaker he used to be. Brisker is having a better sophomore year as he's been an elite tackler, but is still rough in coverage.
Prediction: Vikings 20, Bears 17
Who's ready for another close, one-score game? The Bears have been hanging around lately and don't look like the lame ducks they were earlier in the season, but they're still finding ways to lose games. I think that's what happens here, as Fields makes some big plays but they can't sustain a lead due to not running the ball well and Fields getting sacked. Offensively, the Vikings need Dobbs to take advantage of all of the coverage problems the Bears defense has, while finding a way to keep the run game a threat but not relying on it because of how they likely won't have much efficiency. I suspect the offense starts out slow, but in the second half Dobbs will hit Hockenson and Addison for big plays and end up pulling through.
Any thoughts?
We need a clown smiley. A Vikings clown smiley, to be exact.
... and neither is this Chris guy.