Chicago Bears vs. Minnesota Vikings: Week 12 Players to Watch

The second consecutive divisional battle, this time against the 8-2 Vikings. Can Thomas Brown call another solid game, and can the Bears end their losing streak? Whatever happens, these players will play a huge part. At least according to this guy.

The NFL season is an evolving state of affairs. So much can and does change from week to week. Teams, schemes, NEW OCs / FUTURE HEAD COACHES and injuries all factor into performances on any given Sunday.

In this weekly series, I’ll be featuring one player from each team on each side of the ball who I figure to be integral to their respective teams’ success. You won’t see any QBs as they are, in my opinion, the most critical position in all of sports and, thereby, an obvious choice. You also won’t see any star defensive players like Myles Garret or TJ Watt. Again, too obvious.

No, these are more of the unsung variety. Yet, often just as critical to the success of the team.

Let’s get started with the Chicago Bears.

Offense: Rome Odunze, WR

Last week, with the game on the line, the Bears QB found his rookie counterpart on both 3rd and 4th down to extend the drive and put his team in position to kick a game-winning field goal as time expired. Let me put it another way; when it mattered most on the most important drive of his young career, Caleb Williams trusted Rome Odunze to extend a drive for 16 yards on 3rd and 19 and then again for 21 yards on 4th and 3.

Not DJ Moore. Not Keenan Allen. Not Cole Kmet. Rome Odunze.

Against the Pack, Rome led the team in targets (10) and yards (65) and also leads the team on the year in receiving yards (479). While DJ Moore was clearly the focal point for the offense to start the game, more on that below in last week’s recap, but I digress, Rome may be taking over as the WR1 in Chicago. With his ability to get open at all levels of the field and dominate in the run game as a blocker, I expect Rome to once again pace the team in targets this week. If Caleb can find his fellow first rounder and if Rome can continue setting the tone and leading the way for Swift and RoJo, I am confident the Bears will keep pace with the Vikings in this crisp divisional battle. If Flores and the Minnesota D stifles these promising rookies, expect this 4-game losing streak to continue.

Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images

Defense: Jaylon Johnson, CB

Though he has been a mainstay atop the league’s best corners the last two seasons according to nearly any metric used, Jaylon Johnson has yet to have his signature game. Peanut Tillman had his jump ball INT against Randy Moss in the endzone. Darrell Revis, Deion Sanders and Charles Woodson have each had their memorable moments to solidify their place amongst the all-time greats. Time for Jaylon to do the same, and no I am not talking about intercepting Aiden O’Connell and/or Brian Hoyer. He nearly had it last week to seal the game against GB before he tripped up and let up a big gain (see video below.) Now Justin Jefferson comes to town, arguably the NFL’s top WR. Despite both teams having played 8 times since both Justin and Jaylon have been in the league, these two have only played against each other twice. In their rookie year, Jaylon and the Bears got torched by Jefferson for 135 yards on 8 catches. The next season, in the regular season finale, Jefferson burned the Bears for 107 yards on 5 catches with a TD. Jaylon is a completely different player now than he was back in his first couple of years, and I expect him to come ready to play this week. While I doubt that he gets the chance to shadow “Jetta,” I definitely expect them to get more than their fair share of opportunities against each other and cannot wait to see the fireworks. If Jaylon can look more like a CB1 than he did last week and make his signature performance, I think the Bears will come away victorious. If Jefferson has his way in Chi Town once again, I expect our 5th loss in a row.

Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images

*If this wasn’t a marquee matchup between two of the best in the division, I would have easily had Jonathan Owens in this spot. I expect big things from the former Packer/Texan in his first start of the season. This could be the game where this backup Safety steals the show and nobody from Chicago minds one bit. Minnesota, however? Not so much.

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And now on to the Vikes

Offense: Brian O’Neill, RT

The Minnesota Vikings have amassed the 13th most TDs league-wide, 17th most pass yards, and 21st most rush yards. While having some top-tier talent at RB (Aaron Jones) and the aforementioned WR Justin Jefferson, this offense is beatable largely due to QB Sam Darnold and his propensity to throw INTs with 10 on the year in just 10 games. I could easily put new Viking Cam Robinson here, but with O’Niell manning the right side, typically where Montez Sweat lines up, he gets the nod here. If Montez and the pass rush can get home against the Vikings, I expect Darnold to rush some passes and throw some up to our back 7 in a Bears Win. If O’Neill and the Vikes Offensive Line can keep Darnold upright and open lanes in the run game, we will have another long day against divisional rival and risk yet another L.

Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

Defense: Andrew Van Ginkel, Edge

The former 5th rounder out of Wisconsin is having a career year in his first season with Brian Flores, likely earning him his first Pro-Bowl appearance. Having already reached career highs in Sacks (8), TFL (13), INT (2) and TD (2), Van Ginkel is a huge problem on defense for opposing offenses. With the heavy blitz game that Flores likes to call, I expect Thomas Brown and the Bears to focus on getting rid of the ball quickly. If Van Ginkel can get his hands on some passes and disrupt the quick game and/or make his presence felt with some Sacks or QB pressures, our offense will struggle to move the ball and put points on the board. If Darnell Wright and Braxton Jones can contain the breakout defender, I expect Caleb to build on his success last week and for the Bears to come out on top.

Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

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Recap from Week 11 (and bonus in-season recap):

Bears O – DJ Moore, WR: Focal point of the offense to start the game. Huge boost to the O.

Bears D – Kyler Gordon, CB: Mostly non-factor in the game. Struggled to contain receivers both before and after catch but made one impressive TFL in run game.

Pack O – Josh Jacobs, RB: Consistently punished the Bears with 76 yards and a TD on 18 carries.

Pack D – Kenny Clark, DT: Our OL (surprisingly) shut down Kenny Clark in this one and he didn’t even scratch the stat sheet!

There is 0 chance of a Bears win when all 4 players perform in a way that favors the opponent. What about when it’s mixed? I went back at each week’s PoTW selections and here’s what I found:

Week 1: Shelton, Jaylon, Pollard, Snead – Bears split the difference and barely won. W

Week 2: Braxton, Brisker, Mixon, Edwards – Only Brisker showed up and we lost. L

Week 3: Swift, Edmunds, Pierce, Paye – Maybe Edmunds only. L

Week 4: Roschon, Edwards, Atwell, Fiske – We split the difference and barely won. W

Week 5: Hurricane Helene

Week 6: Keenan, Sweat, Tank, Travon – All four in our favor. Big win. W

Week 7: BYE

Week 8: Rome, Byard, Biadasz, Newton – Maybe Rome? L

Week 9: Kmet, Gervon, McBride, Budda – None in our favor. L

Week 10: Bates, Pickens, Stevenson, White – Bates alone in our favor. L

Week 11: DJ, Gordon, Jacobs, Clark – 2/4 almost worked again. L

We need at least half in our favor in order to have a shot. Otherwise, expect the L.

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What about you? Who are some key players to watch this week against the Vikings?