The Daily Sports Page

CHICAGO — The Vikings made it a defensive afternoon at Soldier Field, grinding out a 9-3 victory over the Bears as Dallas Turner’s sack on the final play capped a performance that left him drenched by the rain and celebrating anyway. Turner finished with two of Minnesota’s four sacks, and the Vikings forced a turnover and blocked a field goal late to preserve the win. Will Reichard booted three field goals, including a 39-yarder with 1:09 remaining, and Minnesota improved to 2-0 for the first time since it opened the 2024 season with five straight wins.

Isaiah Rodgers was central to the finish — he recovered a fumble at the goal line early in the second half and blocked Cairo Santos’ 23-yard try after Chicago’s emergency quarterback, Tyson Bagent, briefly took over. Aaron Jones provided balance on offense, rushing for 105 yards, while starter Carson Wentz was 11-of-20 for 143 yards; Justin Jefferson had three catches for 55 yards. “Defense was unreal. It was a gritty game,” Wentz said after the win.

Chicago’s high-octane offense from Week 1 was largely tamed. Caleb Williams, the Bears’ No. 1 pick in 2024, was 15-of-26 for 138 yards and rushed five times for 42 yards before leaving midway through the fourth quarter with a right hamstring injury; he was helped off the field in a crowd of 58,914. The Bears were held to 297 total yards as Minnesota’s aggressive scheme and playmakers — including Blake Cashman (10 tackles, sack) and Byron Murphy Jr., who intercepted Williams in the first quarter — tilted the game in the visitors’ favor.

The game featured a handful of pivotal moments: trailing 6-3, Chicago marched to first-and-goal at the 1 early in the third quarter, only to have D’Andre Swift fumble on a hit by Jalen Redmond with Rodgers recovering. Later, after Reichard’s third field goal put Minnesota up, Bagent engineered a late drive that reached the Vikings’ 12 before Turner wrapped him up on the final play. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell praised the plan and Turner’s consistency — “D.T. just keeps showing up” — while Bears coach Ben Johnson said, “We’ll see how bad it is tomorrow,” referring to Williams’ hamstring.

Minnesota’s victory was its seventh straight at Soldier Field, tying franchise marks for consecutive road wins over a division opponent, and the teams now turn their attention to next week: the Vikings visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Bears host the Philadelphia Eagles on Sept. 28. Injuries from the game included Vikings defensive lineman Tyrion Ingram‑Dawkins (right hip) and Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson (hamstring); Cashman briefly exited in the third quarter but returned, and O’Connell said he expects Kyler Murray to clear concussion protocol early this week.