Biggest Takeaways from Minnesota Vikings' Week 15 Win

The Minnesota Vikings snapped a two-game losing streak and advanced to the doorstep of the postseason with a 38-17 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday at TCF Bank Stadium. 

Now 9-5, the Vikings can clinch a spot in the playoffs and guarantee a winner-take-all finale versus the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field with a win over the New York Giants in Week 16. 

In the following slides, we'll look at the biggest takeaways from Minnesota's win over the Bears in Week 15. 

Jerick McKinnon Is an Asset

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Coming into Sunday, Vikings backup running back Jerick McKinnon had just 203 total yards with zero touchdowns or plays over 20 yards. 

He came alive against the Bears. 

The Vikings gave him a season-high 11 touches, and he had a team-high four receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown. On the score, McKinnon broke several tackles in turning a short pass into six points. He also rumbled 30 yards on a screen play, helping set up another Minnesota score. 

Overall, McKinnon produced two plays over 20 yards and scored his first professional touchdown.

Adrian Peterson is still the workhorse for the Vikings, but good things seem to happen when McKinnon gets a chance to touch the football. With Minnesota leaning more and more on the quick passing game, McKinnon should continue to be featured in a pass-catching role. 

Rookie Class Continues to Produce

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The Vikings continue to get huge production from one of the best rookie classes of 2015. 

Receiver Stefon Diggs caught three passes for 55 yards and two touchdowns. His first score came on a beautiful throw from Teddy Bridgewater, who lofted a perfect ball into the waiting arms of Diggs in the end zone. On the second, Diggs caught an underneath crosser and bullied his way into the end zone from 33 yards out. 

Defensive end Danielle Hunter was once again impressive, tallying 1.5 sacks for a defense that produced five against Jay Cutler. A third-round pick, Hunter now has five sacks, which leads all rookies. 

Linebacker Eric Kendricks had seven tackles, cornerback Trae Waynes saved a kickoff return for a touchdown, right tackle T.J. Clemmings had a quiet afternoon and safety Anthony Harris knocked away a deep ball intended for Alshon Jeffery.

The Vikings count on several rookies in big roles. The young players are producing in big ways for head coach Mike Zimmer.  

Vikings Efficient in the Important Areas

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Playing well on third down and in the red zone is a huge part of winning in the NFL. The Vikings were good in both areas on Sunday.

Minnesota converted eight of 12 third downs on offense, using 119 yards, three touchdown passes and a touchdown run from Bridgewater to dominate the money down. Meanwhile, the Bears finished 5-of-12.  

The Vikings were even better in the red zone, scoring on all four trips inside the 20. Bridgewater was again a big reason why. He hit Diggs on an incredible throw for one score and scrambled in from 12 yards out for another. Bridgewater also found McKinnon and Zach Line for catch-and-run scores. 

Minnesota did give up two Chicago scores inside the red zone, but the pair of touchdowns hardly made a difference when the Vikings were so deadly on third down and inside the Bears' red zone. 

Teddy on Fire

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To begin the month of December, there was legitimate concern surrounding the ability of Bridgewater to produce as a quarterback within the current setup of the Vikings offense. The last two weeks painted a much different picture.

Suddenly, the Vikings have a young quarterback hitting stride at exactly the right time.

Bridgewater was close to perfect against the Bears, completing 17 of 20 passes with a career-high four touchdown passes and a passer rating of 154.4. He also ran for another score as the Vikings rolled off 38 points despite Peterson rushing for just 63 yards. 

After throwing just eight touchdown passes over his first 12 games, Bridgewater now has five in his last two outings. He's playing with a tempo and rhythm in the passing game, and offensive coordinator Norv Turner is putting him in great positions with quick drops and creative route formations. 

The Vikings might finally have a passing game. That's a strong development for a team missing one for most of this season. 

Lock in the Postseason

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Unlikely but conceivable scenarios existed in which the Vikings would have missed the playoffs with an 8-8 finish. However, Sunday's win—Minnesota's ninth of the season—nearly ensures the six-team NFC postseason field will include the Vikings. 

With two games left, the Vikings possess a two-game lead over the 7-7 Atlanta Falcons. Minnesota has the head-to-head tiebreaker over Atlanta, and no team below the Falcons is capable of getting to at least nine wins and creating the need for the complicated three-team tiebreakers. 

The only way for the Vikings to miss out on the postseason would be for Minnesota and the Seattle Seahawks to lose out and finish 9-7 and the Falcons to win out and also finish 9-7. In that three-way tiebreaker, the Vikings would be left out due to strength of victory. It's a scenario with so many moving parts and unlikely results that it's hard to even consider.

The scenarios don't need to be difficult. The Vikings can wrap up a playoff spot and set up a highly anticipated NFC North title game with a win over the New York Giants next Sunday night.