MINNEAPOLIS, MN - DECEMBER 31: Mitchell Trubisky #10 of the Chicago Bears and Case Keenum #7 of the Minnesota Vikings greet each other after the game on December 31, 2017 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings defeated the Bears 23-10. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – DECEMBER 31: Latavius Murray #25 of the Minnesota Vikings celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Chicago Bears on December 31, 2017 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
The good things from Week 17 vs Bears
The opening drives. Minnesota pounded the ball down the throats of the Bears, running the ball 6 times and asserting their dominance along the line of scrimmage. Doing this after forcing a Bears punt to start the game is even better!
Latavius Murray is a monster. When the ball is near the goal line, the Vikings know they can trust the offensive line and Murray to punch the ball into the end zone. He continues to prove his value after the team lost Dalvin Cook to a season-ending knee injury.
Mike Remmers at guard. I have to admit that I didn’t like the idea of moving Remmers to the interior of the line and playing Rashod Hill at right tackle, but Remmers looked great at guard and Hill held his own. The versatility of the line is amazing.
That defense though. We could talk about the ability to stuff the run all game long. We could talk about the stops on 3rd and 4th down. We could discuss the pass breakups and winning the line of scrimmage. But let’s just lump in all together and say this defense is amazing.
Overall player effort. Watching this game, everyone just seemed a little quicker and a little more determined to make sure that nothing went wrong in the pursuit of a first-round bye in the playoffs. They maintained that intensity through the entire game, especially on defense.
