Week 12 of the 2023 NFL season came to a close with the Chicago Bears defeating the Minnesota Vikings 12-10 on Monday Night Football.
The game's first touchdown came with under six minutes in the fourth quarter. Then it got interesting.
The Chicago Bears beat the Minnesota Vikings 12-10 on Monday Night Football in a game in which they strictly scored field goals.
After Minnesota took a 10-9 lead late in the fourth, Justin Fields led a game-winning touchdown drive, headlined by a 3rd-and-10 bullet to D.J. Moore that set them up in field goal position.
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Cairo Santos then stepped up and made his fourth of five attempts on the night.
The result bumped the Bears to 4-9 on the season while the Vikings took a dent and dropped to 6-6.
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Let's analyze the game further with five winners and losers:
LOSER: Josh Dobbs
The Josh Dobbs magic is officially buried. It started last week when the Denver Broncos came back to win, but Dobbs held his own in that one. It was the complete opposite story on Monday, where he completed 21 of 31 passes for 163 yards, one touchdown and four picks.
Dobbs' first few wins with the Vikings concealed the fact that he wasn't all that with the Arizona Cardinals, either. His NFL resume is that of a journeyman, too, and the Bears' defense came to play to highlight his flaws.
WINNER: Bears' defense
Neither offense had a pretty showing due to a clear lack of quality on both sides, but the defenses stood up to the challenge, too.
Chicago, in particular, brought down four interceptions thanks to Jaylon Johnson, T.J. Edwards, Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker.
Minnesota mustered 73 total rushing yards -- led by Alexander Mattison's 52 on 10 carries -- while T.J. Hockenson led the receiving department with five catches for 50 yards and the lone score. All of Hockenson's production came in the second half.
LOSER: Bears' offense
Chicago was quite fortunate its defense never let up because any other competent team would've blown out the Vikings by the third quarter.
Fields didn't have a perfect game, but he got the job done in the end. He completed 27 of 37 passes but only for 217 yards, no touchdowns and no picks. He ran for 57 yards on 12 carries but also fumbled twice, which could've been the reason Chicago lost.
Moore, though, was the lone quality standout with 11 catches for 114 yards, including the key 36-yarder that was the longest play of the day for any team.
WINNER: Vikings' defensive line
The main reason why Fields threw for just 217 yards despite 27 completions was because of the Vikings' pass rush. Chicago settled for several screens that usually got snuffed out, otherwise Fields was left scrambling for his life.
Fields was sacked three times and hit seven times, but he definitely picked up heavy mileage for the amount he scrambled. Chicago's defensive line had a similar effect on Dobbs, hence the turnovers. Danielle Hunter led the way with 1.5 sacks and three QB hits in an impressive individual showing.
LOSER: Vikings conceding two records
The 12-10 score wasn't the only L the Vikings conceded. The result also meant Bears head coach Matt Eberflus picked up his first divisional win since 2021. They were previously 0-9.
Also, teams were 0-28 on the season in games where they didn't score a touchdown. That's now 1-28 with the Bears' four field goals being enough to top Minnesota. Santos connected on four of five attempts, including a 55-yarder. The game winner was from 30 yards while his sole miss was from 48, which came on the first drive of the game. That would've loomed large had Chicago lost.
