Vikings vs. Bears: Postgame Grades, Notes and Quotes for Minnesota

It came down to a last-second field goal, but the Minnesota Vikings ultimately left Soldier Field with their first victory over the Chicago Bears since 2007, knocking off their second NFC North opponent in as many weeks by a final score of 23-20.

Chicago jumped out to an early 3-0 lead after the Jay Cutler-led Bears drove down the field to set up a 55-yard Robbie Gould field goal, his longest of the season.

Teddy Bridgewater and the Vikings offense continued to struggle early in the game, but Minnesota benefited from an outstanding special teams play to keep the score close. Late in the first quarter, return man Marcus Sherels took a Pat O'Donnell punt 65 yards to the house, staking Minnesota out to a four-point lead.

Blair Walsh added a 43-yard field goal on Minnesota's next drive, as the Vikings continued to put pressure on the Bears without the benefit of an offensive touchdown.

The tide appeared to turn late in the first half, however, when cornerback Kyle Fuller intercepted Bridgewater on a target to wide receiver Stefon Diggs over the middle. Cutler made the Vikings pay for the turnover, finding wide receiver Alshon Jeffery late in the first half for a 21-yard score despite near-perfect coverage by cornerback Xavier Rhodes.

After Gould and Walsh traded field goals, Cutler led a long 14-play, 74-yard drive to grab Chicago a seven-point advantage with time beginning to dwindle in the fourth quarter. The Bears signal-caller called his own name to finish off the drive, fooling the Vikings' red-zone defense to score a four-yard rushing touchdown.

Bridgewater, who had struggled mightily throughout the game, responded on the ensuing drive to knot the game up at 20. The seven-play, 84-yard drive was capped off by a 40-yard Diggs touchdown catch in which the rookie spun off cornerback Sherrick McManis and forced his way into the end zone for six.

Minnesota's defense held strong on the following Chicago possession to get the Vikings the ball back. Rookie running back Jeremy Langford, active due to an injury to Matt Forte, had an opportunity to extend the drive but dropped an accurate Cutler pass, which forced the Bears to punt.

Wide receiver Charles Johnson made an outstanding 30-yard catch and Adrian Peterson continued to run the ball effectively on what proved to be the final drive of the game. Walsh then converted a 36-yard field goal as time expired, lifting the Vikings to a 23-20 win and a 5-2 record for the season.

Bridgewater finished the game 17-of-30 (56 percent) with 187 passing yards, one touchdown pass and an interception. Peterson added 103 rushing yards on 20 carries, and Diggs once again led all Vikings receivers with six catches, 95 yards and a touchdown.

Cornerback Terence Newman led the Vikings defense with eight total tackles. Rookie Danielle Hunter turned in Minnesota's only sack on the day.

Position Grades for Vikings

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

Position	Grade
QB	C
RB	A
WR	A
TE	C
OL	A
DL	B
LB	B
DB	C
Special Teams	A
Coaching	B

Bridgewater did not play his best game against the Bears, but he was able to get the job done when it mattered most. However, he was helped quite a bit by a pair of great plays by Diggs and Johnson, which is accounted for in his full-game grade.

The counting statistics won't blow anyone away, but Peterson played an outstanding game from start to finish. He was consistent and kept drives alive while Bridgewater struggled early in the game.

Mike Wallace didn't play his best game, but Diggs and Johnson largely contributed to the Vikings victory on Sunday. Bridgewater's issues naturally played a role in the success of this group, but multiple major plays made by Vikings wide receivers made their quarterback look good and led this team down the field for both the game-tying and game-winning scores.

Kyle Rudolph and MyCole Pruitt combined for four catches and 37 yards, but the tight end position was largely a non-factor for the Vikings, which is reflected by an average grade.

As a group, the offensive line played its best game of the season against the Bears, allowing Bridgewater to be sacked just one time (Pernell McPhee) while opening up running lanes for Peterson for a complete 60 minutes. Considering that right tackle T.J. Clemmings missed snaps due to an injury, this was a very impressive showing from Minnesota's front five.

The Vikings defense did allow just 20 points, but their complete performance was not as strong as one may have hoped. Cutler did a nice job finding holes and avoiding pressure, and Jeffery, after a slow start, finished the game with 10 catches, 116 yards and a touchdown.

Given that Forte spent most of the game in the locker room, the Vikings defense could have performed at a higher level.

Mike Zimmer and Norv Turner called a good game for the most part, but it was a bit concerning that no (effective) adjustments were made to stop Jeffery. Furthermore, Turner's third-down play-calling was rather predictable and his personnel packages tended to telegraph whether Minnesota was going to run or pass the ball.

Walsh and Sherels were major factors on Sunday, outweighing Jeff Locke's subpar performance to earn the Vikings special teams an A in Week 8.

Teddy Bridgewater: Great Under Major Pressure

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Vikings fans have likely seen Bridgewater use the acronym "GUMP," which of course stands for great under major pressure. Despite a rather so-so performance as a whole, Bridgewater embodied this term on Sunday.

Kevin Fishbain of ChicagoFootball.com illustrated the difference between how Bridgewater performed during the first three quarters compared to Minnesota's final drives:

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Bridgewater through 3 quarters: 10/20 for 73 yards, INT, 38.1 rating Bridgewater on final 2 drives: 6/7 for 106 yards, TD, 158.3 rating

— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) November 1, 2015"

To be fair, Bridgewater did receive quite a bit of help during the last two drives as well, as Diggs and Johnson were able to make contested catches on balls that very easily could have been intercepted.

But the Vikings quarterback still made a number of great plays of his own to lead his team to a big divisional win and earn the praise of his coach.

"I think I've been asked the question about, 'Can this guy, if he had to, lead us back to a victory?' and I think you saw that today," Zimmer said during his postgame press conference (via Vikings.com).

Due to the plays by Diggs and Johnson, Bridgewater's 19-yard rush after taking a sack on the first play of Minnesota's game-tying touchdown drive has somewhat taken a back seat.

Considering the McPhee hit appeared to bend his legs in an awkward fashion, Bridgewater's ability to get back up and rumble to a first down using his legs on the very next play was outstanding.

Without Bridgewater's ability to extend plays and give his receivers the opportunity to make a play, the Vikings would not have won this game. It really is just that simple.

"Teddy made some huge plays when he had to, and that's Teddy," Zimmer said. "That's what he does."

Blair Walsh Putting Kicking Issues Behind Him

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

After struggling to find consistency during the preseason and early in the regular season, it appears that Walsh is back to performing at a high level. The Vikings kicker converted three field goals on Sunday, including a game-winner, to push his streak to 12 (excluding extra points).

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"Not changed anything, but I'm confident and I'm where I want to be and trying to get in my groove, just making kicks and that's huge for us," Walsh said after the game (Vikings.com). "You know, this team, we're going to play in a lot of close games, that's just how our division is and we need to make all those kicks, especially those fourth quarter ones and we have been doing a good job recently."

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The only lapse in Walsh's game over the past three weeks was a missed extra point against the Detroit Lions. Considering that he has also managed to convert two field goals from 50-plus yards away over the same time span, this is a rather small blemish.

Walsh's ability to rebound from struggling early in the season has largely contributed to Minnesota's current three-game winning streak. Additionally, it appears that he has earned back the confidence of his coach with his recent run of success:

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"Well, I knew he was going to make it," Zimmer said. "He had been making them every day in practice. He's been 9-for-9. The ball came off his foot good. You can tell when a guy is kicking the ball good; there's a thump to it, and he thumped it pretty good, dead down the middle."

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Minnesota is a team that wins with great defense and an efficient offense. Naturally, this has, and will continue to, put this team in quite a few close-game situations.

Kickers who are not only consistent but can also convert deep attempts are at a premium in this league and even more important to teams that play in a lot of tight games. This is exactly the type of asset Walsh has been for the Vikings for the past three weeks.

Mike Zimmer: "It's All About How You Finish"

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press

Thanks to Walsh's late field goal, Minnesota's head coach was all smiles on Sunday.

"It's a very, very good win for our football team. When you're in these situations, and you continue to get into these situations, and you continue to find a way to win, that's what's most important," Zimmer said.

"It's all about how you finish."

Minnesota did not play its best game against Chicago. Bridgewater underperformed, and the defense allowed Cutler to play with consistency throughout the majority of the game.

Still, the Vikings managed to find a way to win on a field that has given them trouble for nearly a decade. They were able to put together strong drives when it mattered most, receiving huge plays from a number of different players in critical moments.

Good teams win games even when they don't play their best football, and Minnesota did that on Sunday.

As an added bonus, the gritty comeback win was likely very meaningful to Zimmer, according to the Vikings kicker.

"Zimmer, being a Chicago native, I know he'll never admit it, but I know this one is a little more special to him," Walsh said.

Teddy Bridgewater: "We Show Great Resiliency"

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Zimmer was not the only one praising his team's ability to make plays when it mattered most, as Bridgewater also expressed excitement regarding his team's late-game performance.

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"This team, we show great resiliency and guys are determined to come out of this game victorious," Bridgewater said (Vikings.com). "We had heard all week that we haven't won here since, I can't tell you when. The guys just did a great job of digging deep and showed a lot of heart today. Like I said, things didn't go our way at the start of the game, but we continued to fight throughout the course of the game."

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The Vikings quarterback also noted that his team was prepared for a battle:

"We knew this was going to be a 60-minute game, and we were prepared to fight until the clock hit zero, and it showed today," he said.

Resiliency is a major factor in the NFL, as failure is inherent to the game. Great cornerbacks, for example, still "fail" roughly 50 percent of the time. Even Drew Brees, who completed 71.2 percent of his passes in 2011, still "failed" 28.8 percent of the time.

Forgetting about mistakes is imperative to success in this league, and Bridgewater has shown an ability to do that. His counting statistics will not turn any heads, but he has shown an ability to find ways to win when facing adversity, and that is a key quality in a winning quarterback.

Minnesota has not had the benefit of a player like Bridgewater in quite some time. His talent and mental fortitude is truly outstanding—and he is only 22 years old.

He may not always throw for 300 yards, but Vikings fans should be thrilled Bridgewater wears purple and gold every Sunday.

Statistics courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.

For more Vikings news, statistics and discussion, find me on Twitter @RobertReidellBT.