Minnesota linebacker Jordan Hicks scored a 42-yard touchdown on a fumble recovery to go with an interception, and the Vikings held on for a 19-13 win over the host Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon.
Kirk Cousins completed 21 of 31 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown for Minnesota (2-4). Jordan Addison caught the Vikings’ lone touchdown pass as Minnesota emerged on the positive end of their sixth consecutive game decided by eight or fewer points.
Justin Fields completed six of 10 passes for 58 yards and one interception for Chicago (1-5) before he left in the third quarter because of a right hand injury. He was replaced by undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent, who completed 10 of 14 passes for 83 yards but threw a costly interception in the final two minutes.
The Vikings defense wasted no time in pressuring the Bears’ rookie signal-caller, who played collegiately at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W. Va.
On Bagent’s first NFL drive, Vikings safety Josh Metellus blitzed into the pocket untouched and popped the ball loose. Hicks picked up the fumble and sprinted downfield to increase Minnesota’s lead to 19-6 with 6:44 left in the third quarter.
Bagent regrouped to help the Bears pull within 19-13 with 7:46 remaining in the fourth quarter. He took the snap at the Vikings’ 1-yard line, and tight end Cole Kmet helped push him across the goal line to finish a nine-play, 77-yard drive.
The Bears defense forced a three-and-out to give another opportunity to Bagent, who led an impressive march down the field before Byron Murphy Jr. intercepted him deep in Minnesota territory just before the two-minute warning.
Both teams traded field goals until late in the first half.
The Vikings started the scoring on Greg Joseph’s 53-yard kick with 6:24 left in the first quarter.
Chicago pulled even on a 22-yard kick by Cairo Santos early in the second quarter.
Minnesota regained a 6-3 lead on Joseph’s 51-yard field goal on the next possession.
Santos struck again, this time from 53 yards, to even the score at 6-6 with 3:18 remaining before the half.
Minnesota finally found the end zone with 12 seconds left before intermission. Cousins fired a strike to Addison in the back left corner of the end zone, but Joseph was blocked on an extra-point attempt to keep the score 12-6.
–Field Level Media
