By Alec Lewis, Kevin Fishbain, Adam Jahns and Amos Morale III
John Parker Romo’s 29-yard overtime field goal gave the Minnesota Vikings a 30-27 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
Romo’s kick capped a 10-play, 68-yard drive that featured big connections from Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold to T.J. Hockenson, Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, who finished with a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown.
Chicago forced overtime behind a wild final minute in the fourth quarter, as the Bears scored a touchdown, converted a 2-point conversion, and then recovered an onside kick. In the final seconds of regulation, quarterback Caleb Williams found D.J. Moore for a 27-yard gain to set up Cairo Santos’ game-tying 48-yard field goal.
The Bears got the ball first in overtime but were forced to punt, leaving Minnesota with the chance to win on a field goal.
VIKINGS WIN IN OVERTIME pic.twitter.com/2KieGMIIbq
— NFL (@NFL) November 24, 2024
Addison goes off
Last week, Jefferson, the Vikings’ superstar wide receiver, was asked how he’d defend himself. His reply? Shut him down, make the other Vikings receivers beat them. That’s the approach the Bears took Sunday afternoon at Soldier Field, and Vikings No. 2 receiver Addison torched them. The second-year receiver finished with his career-high yardage on eight catches. He also hauled in his fourth touchdown pass of the season.
Jefferson, meanwhile, only caught one pass for seven yards during regulation. Addison displayed his entire skillset with the Bears focused on Jefferson. He snatched a 45-yard pass with Bears safety draped all over his back. His touchdown grab was also a highly-contested catch. In the second half, Darnold found Addison on a crossing route, and Addison tightroped his way down the sideline for a 69-yard gain. He supplied the same level of explosiveness, route-running and ball-tracking ability that Vikings fans have become accustomed to watching with Jefferson. — Alec Lewis, Vikings beat writer
Darnold shows toughness
Darnold delivered when the Vikings needed him most. He completed all six of his attempts in overtime and found Hockenson for a game-sealing 29-yard pass down the field. Darnold had exited in the fourth quarter after getting rolled up on his ankle following a pass.
In overtime, he was also shaking his hand. The toughness was emblematic of his entire season; Darnold has been on the injury report for multiple weeks with knee and foot injuries. The outing was also pretty emblematic of his career. He threw for 330 yards and two touchdowns on 22-of-34 passing, stringing together his second straight impressive game.
It’s not all perfect. Inaccuracies surfaced at times, and he threw the ball into harms way over the middle of the field. All in all, though, Darnold produced when the Vikings needed him to, which is a theme in Minnesota’s 9-2 season. — Lewis
Chicago’s unlucky streak continues
The Bears have to lead the league in heart-breaking losses this season. A week after losing to the Green Bay Packers on a blocked field goal as time expired, the Vikings won on Romo’s 29-yard field goal in overtime. They’ve lost five games in a row, starting with the Hail Mary loss against the Washington Commanders.
The Bears defense couldn’t stop Darnold in overtime. He found Hockenson wide open for a 29-yard gain to set up Romo’s game-winner. It was a wild game for the Bears. Safety Tarvarius Moore recovered an onside kick. But the Vikings also blocked kicker Santos’ 48-yard field goal attempt in the second quarter, while returner D’Andre Carter also muffed a punt. Two pass inference penalties were called on cornerback Jaylon Johnson against Jefferson. Add it all up and the Bears are only good enough to scare their division rivals right now. — Adam Jahns, Bears beat writer
Another good day for Williams
The talk all week was about how the rookie quarterback Williams would handle Brian Flores’ defense. He passed the test, including a 27-yard strike to help set up overtime. The series in overtime included Williams’ worst play — taking a 12-yard sack — but overall, this was a good sign of progress.
This season has quickly turned into Williams’ development and progress being the priority, with playoffs virtually out of the picture. For the second week in a row, Bears fans can feel better about the future because of Williams. He got the ball out quick. He made some big-time throws on third down. He seemed calm in the hectic pocket. And he protected the football. The Bears would prefer to see his positive performance come in wins, but in a season like this, they’ll take a game like he had Sunday.
Williams finished 32-of-47 passing for 340 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. — Kevin Fishbain, Bears beat writer
Required reading
- NFL Week 12 live updates and scores: Playoff projections, schedule, predictions, news, inactives, odds
- How Josh Metellus became the key to Brian Flores’ innovative Vikings defense
- Vikings’ middling run game makes it abundantly clear — they need help on the interior OL
- Uneasy energy around the Bears is very familiar and bad news for Matt Eberflus
(Photo: Luke Hales / Getty Images)
