5 Bold Predictions – Minnesota Vikings vs. Chicago Bears – Week 15

Will the Minnesota Vikings keep playoff hopes alive on Sunday vs. the Chicago Bears?

The last time the Chicago Bears took on the Minnesota Vikings, they were a much different team. The Bears were sliding into a downward spiral that led to six straight losses after a 5-1 start and without the services of David Montgomery and Mitchell Trubisky, the Vikings were able to bully Chicago around and pick up a 19-13 win on “Monday Night Football”.

This type of NFC North style win is the type of game that Mike Zimmer has the box score framed in his office. But it will definitely be a precursor to what we could see as the two teams meet on Sunday in a de facto elimination game.

Minnesota fell to 6-7 on the season after Dan Bailey kicked his team out of a playoff spot against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week.

While a lot of the discussion was focused on Bailey’s four missed kicks, the Vikings had plenty of other issues including a lack of urgency on offense and a lack of pressure on defense that allowed the Arizona Cardinals to leapfrog them for the final playoff spot in the NFC.

To stay in the hunt for that spot, Minnesota will have to defeat the Bears on Sunday. Chicago is heading toward the same level of mediocrity as the Vikings in the final week, but they’ve at least shown signs of life. Bill Lazor has taken over the Bears’ offensive play-calling duties from Matt Nagy and while it hasn’t translated into a winning streak, Chicago has averaged 30.3 points per game in their last three matchups.

Both teams need a win to stay in the playoff hunt so let’s make our five bold predictions and see who will stay alive on Sunday.