The Bears (6-3) will seek their third straight win and seventh in their last eight games Sunday when they visit the Vikings (4-5) at U.S. Bank Stadium.
After a loss to the Ravens Oct. 26 snapped their four-game winning streak, the Bears rebounded to record back-to-back comeback victories the past two weekends over the Bengals 47-42 and Giants 24-20.
Minnesota opened the season 3-2 but is 1-3 since its bye week, losing to the Eagles 28-22 and Chargers 37-10, beating the Lions 27-24 and falling to the Ravens 27-10. All four of those teams made the playoffs in 2024. The Vikings are 3-2 on the road and 1-3 at home.
"You look at this team we're about to play and [I have] a lot of respect for their coaching staff," said coach Ben Johnson. "[Kevin] O'Connell, he was the coach of the year last year for a reason. He always has his guys playing and they're in all these one-score games, and they usually find a way to come out on top of them."
Sunday's game is the Bears' first against an NFC North opponent since Week 2 in Detroit. It's also a rematch of their 27-24 season-opening loss to the Vikings at Soldier Field.
"We are a different team than we were Week 1; so is Minnesota," Johnson said. "This will be a completely different matchup as far as I am concerned. The trust level has grown for a number of players within our coaching staff. We can really hang our hat on a number of guys at this point and feel really good about what we're going to get on gameday."
When the Bears have the ball
Caleb Williams quarterbacks a Bears offense that ranks seventh in the NFL in points per game (26.6) and third in total yards (379.8), second rushing (147.3) and 11th passing (232.2). He has combined impressive arm talent with elite scrambling ability and elusiveness to become a difference-maker this season.
Williams has thrown for 2,136 yards with 13 touchdowns, four interceptions and a 92.5 passer rating. He has also rushed for 246 yards and three TDs, including 116 yards the past two weeks versus the Bengals and Giants, the second most by an NFL quarterback during that span. In addition, he has reduced the number of sacks he's taken per game from 4.0 last year to 1.6 in 2025.
Williams will face a Vikings defense Sunday that's coordinated by Brian Flores, who is known for disguising coverages and employing a high volume of blitzes.
"He's probably one of the more challenging coaches that I've ever had to go against so far in my career," Williams said. "Obviously, I haven't played every single team yet and every single D-coordinator, but up to this point, he's been that. Every single play, he's challenging you to the full mental capacity that you are and can be. This is always a fun game going versus [Flores] and his defense and all of his players over there that he has on that side of the ball."
"[I've] got a lot of respect for Flores," Johnson said. "Gives you all kinds of problems. You've got to be able to be on your best for all 60, 70 plays on offense to have a chance. And it's as mentally fatiguing as it is physically fatiguing for our guys. Quite a challenge. They do a number of things very well."
The same could be said for the Bears offense. The unit has rushed for at least 170 yards in three of the last four games and is averaging 183.4 yards on the ground since Week 6, the most in the NFL during that span. D'Andre Swift leads the team in rushing with 544 yards and 4 TDs on 113 carries. Rookie Kyle Monangai has added 390 yards and 2 TDs on 75 attempts.
The Vikings defense ranks 18th in the NFL in points allowed per game (23.7) and 12th in total yards (317.2), 22nd against the run (125.6) and ninth versus the pass (191.7). The unit is led by tackle Jalen Redmond, outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. and safety Josh Metellus. Edge rusher Jonathan Greenard has been ruled out of Sunday's game with a shoulder injury.
Key matchup: Bears right tackle Darnell Wright vs. Vikings outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel
Wright has taken his game to the next level in his third NFL season, drawing praise from O'Connell, who called the Bears' 2023 first-round pick "one of the best right tackles in football." Wright will be opposed by Van Ginkel, an All-Pro last season when he registered 11.5 sacks and returned two interceptions for touchdowns. He is slated to make his third straight start Sunday after missing five games with a neck injury.
When the Vikings have the ball
Minnesota is quarterbacked by J.J. McCarthy, a 2024 first-round pick who made his first NFL start in the season opener against the Bears after missing his entire rookie year with a knee injury.
The Michigan product will make his third straight start Sunday after sitting out five games with an ankle injury. He is 2-2 as a starter this season, throwing for 692 yards with five TDs, six interceptions and a 65.8 passer rating. McCarthy has also rushed for 110 yards and 2 TDs on 21 carries.
"His ability to use his feet to create in the passing game is a challenge for us," said defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. "And they've got so many skilled players that make it so difficult to defend. You want to load the box and try to take the run game away, and you've got skill position players on the outside that make it a challenge. And then you want to play them in a light box, and you try to devote more resources to the passing game and then the run game comes alive."
McCarthy's top target is receiver Justin Jefferson, a four-time All-Pro who leads the Vikings with 51 receptions for 686 yards and 2 TDs.
"He's got a great feel for the game," Allen said. "He does a great job of understanding how to set up his routes to create separation. And more so than anything else, this guy is one of the more competitive guys that we'll go against. I think that's what really makes great players great."
The Bears entered Week 11 leading the NFL with 20 takeaways, 13 interceptions and a plus-14 turnover ratio. They've generated 19 takeaways in their six wins and only one in their three losses. The Vikings have committed 16 giveaways, tied for the second most in the NFL, and have a minus-7 turnover ratio.
The defense is led by end Montez Sweat, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and safety Kevin Byard III. Sweat tops the unit with 5.5 sacks, matching his total from all of last year. Edmunds and Byard are tied with Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd for the NFL lead with four interceptions. Edmunds' nine picks since he joined the Bears in 2023 are the most by any linebacker in the league and Byard's 33 interceptions since he entered the NFL in 2016 are the most by any player.
Key matchup: Bears defensive end Montez Sweat vs. Vikings right tackle Brian O'Neill
Sweat enters Week 11 having recorded at least one sack in each of his last four games and will look to continue that streak Sunday. He'll line up across from O'Neill, who was selected by the Vikings in the second round of the 2018 draft out of Pittsburgh and last year was voted to his second Pro Bowl.
Fun facts
- Williams is on pace to pass for 4,035 yards this season, which would break Erik Kramer's Bears record of 3,838 set in 1995.
- This year marks the first time the Bears and Vikings will have completed their season series before Nov. 17 since 2002.
- The Bears have scored touchdowns on 70% of their red-zone possessions (7 of 10) in their last two games after reaching the end zone on 31.2% of their drives inside-the-20 (5 of 16) in their previous four contests.
