3 reasons the Minnesota Vikings will beat the Chicago Bears in Week 17
By Adam Carlson
2. Winning the battle at the line of scrimmage
One thing the Minnesota Vikings have done extremely well this year is pressure the quarterback. While their sacks seem to come in spurts, the purple and gold leads the league in passer takedowns entering Week 17, gaining an NFL best 50 sacks on the year so far and looking to add to that number this week.
The bad news is that Chicago is good at protecting Trubisky. They tie for the eighth-fewest sacks allowed at only 33. Plus, during their first meeting, the Vikings only got Trubisky down once for a total of five yards lost.
Much of the reason for the lack of sacks on the Bears quarterback is that he escaped the pocket ten times in that game and picked up 43 yards while doing so, including a 13-yard scamper that made Minnesota look silly.
To really win the line of scrimmage, Minnesota will need to contain Trubisky and the rushing attack off the edge. While that didn’t happen very well during their last meeting, the Vikings should know better this time.