The Chicago Bears were defeated by the Minnesota Vikings, 29-22, where another fumble cost Chicago a chance at victory.
But this was far from a demoralizing loss for the Bears, especially when you take into consideration that Justin Fields took a step forward in his development.
While it was a brutal first half for all, Chicago battled back from an 18-point deficit to eventually take a fourth-quarter lead. Unfortunately, it was short-lived after Ihmir Smith-Marsette was stripped of the ball on the Bears’ final possession with just over a minute left.
We’re taking a look at 20 key stats from Chicago’s Week 5 loss to Minnesota:
1: Number of touchdowns allowed by Bears in second half this season
Before Sunday’s game, the Bears were one of two teams that hadn’t allowed a second-half touchdown this season. And their first couldn’t be more costly. Chicago gave up a 17-play, 75-yard game-winning touchdown drive to the Vikings.
1: Onside kick attempt by Bears
After the Bears offense scored a touchdown on their opening possession of the second half, Matt Eberflus elected to attempt an onside kick. While Chicago didn’t recover, it didn’t hurt them. The defense had a nice stand and the Vikings missed a long field goal attempt.
1: Velus Jones reception and touchdown
Rookie Velus Jones Jr. finally got an offensive snap, and it was a productive one. Jones hauled in his first NFL reception — a nine-yard touchdown. How about he get Jones some more reps on offense?
1: Sack on Kirk Cousins
The Bears pass rush continues to struggle, as evidenced by their one sack of Kirk Cousins. Justin Jones wrapped up Cousins for the lone sack in the second half.
1: Kindle Vildor interception
The Bears had another interception — but it wasn’t Eddie Jackson again. This time, it was Kindle Vildor, who notched his first NFL interception on a pass intended for Adam Thielen. The takeaway led to a Bears field goal.
1: Blocked field goal by Bears
It was a big series for the Bears’ special teams, who just came up short on recovering an onside kick. After Chicago’s defense came up with a big third-down stop, rookie Dominique Robinson blocked a 51-yard field goal attempt to keep the score 21-16.
2: Number of fourth-down attempts for Bears this season
Heading into Sunday’s game, the Bears were the only team not to convert on fourth down. Not only did Matt Eberflus elect to go for it on fourth-and-4 on Minnesota’s 37-yard line, but they converted it on a seven-yard run by Justin Fields. It led to a Chicago field goal.
2: The number of fumbles that cost Chicago a chance at victory in last two games
For the second consecutive week, a fumble cost the Bears a chance to win the game. Last week., it was Velus Jones’ muffed punt. This week, it was Ihmir Smith-Marsette being stripped of the ball as Chicago was driving down the field to tie the game.
4: Receptions by Cole Kmet
Cole Kmet didn’t have an otherworldly performance, but his four receptions was a big step in getting him more involved on offense. Kmet was a big part of the passing game, notching four catches for 45 yards, including some clutch catches.
17: Consecutive completions for Kirk Cousins to start the game
Kirk Cousins couldn’t have gotten off to a better start against the Bears, completing his first 17 pass attempts. It set a franchise record. Cousins did eventually come back to Earth, but he do whatever he wanted against Chicago in that first quarter.
18: Deficit overcome by the Bears in second half
It’s safe to say not many expected the Bears to battle their way back from an 18-point deficit. But Matt Eberflus’ scrappy team did just that, scoring on their final four possessions (minus their last drive where Ihmir Smith-Marsette fumbled) and holding the Vikings to just eight second-half points.
22: Points scored by the Bears
Before this game, Chicago was averaging 16 points per game. They eclipsed that with their 22 points scored, and it could’ve been more. Sadly, we’ll never know. It was their second-most points scored this season behind only their 23-20 win over the Texans.
39: Reception by Darnell Mooney
Darnell Mooney probably had the Catch of the Year on Sunday. Mooney channeled his inner Odell Beckham Jr. on a one-handed, 39-yard grab that lit a spark under the Bears offense at the end of the first half.
51: Cairo Santos' longest field goal
After missing the last game for personal reasons, Cairo Santos connected on all three of his field goal attempts in Sunday’s loss. That included a 51-yard field goal after Kindle Vildor picked off Kirk Cousins.
52: Impressive TD run by Justin Fields that was negated
The game’s most impressive play technically didn’t happen when Justin Fields flashed him impressive athleticism on a 52-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. The play was negated by a ticky-tacky illegal block penalty, where Ihmir Smith-Marsette said Cameron Dantzler “flopped” to sell it.
71: Completion percentage by Justin Fields
Justin Fields took a big step forward in his development against the Vikings, where he completed 15-of-21 passes. His 71 completion percentage was by and far the highest of his season. Fields has completed 50 percent or less of his passes in three of the first five games. This performance is definitely one for him to build upon.
78: Total rushing yards by Bears
Entering Week 5, the Bears had the league’s third-best run game, averaging 177.3 rushing yards per game. They had nearly 100 yards less against the Vikings with just 78 rushing yards, where Justin Fields accounted for 47 of those.
82: Scrimmage yards by David Montgomery
While David Montgomery only had 20 yards on 12 carries (1.7 average) in his return, he was a huge contributor in the passing game. Montgomery had a team-best 62 receiving yards on four catches.
154: Receiving yards by Justin Jefferson
Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson proved to be a huge problem for the Bears in Sunday’s loss. Jefferson had a monster first half with 10 catches for 138 yards. Minnesota moved him all over the place, and there was no Chicago defender who could contain him in the first half. Jefferson finished with 154 receiving yards on 12 catches.
208: Passing yards by Justin Fields
Don’t look now, but the passing game might finally be kicking into gear. Justin Fields had a season-high 208 passing yards on 15 completions against the Vikings. He averaged 9.9 yards per attempt.
