After last week's games, both clubs are 6-7. Minnesota now owns the tiebreaker against Chicago after a 19-13 victory in Week 10. After taking their emotions out on the Houston Texans at home last Sunday, the Bears snapped a six-game losing run. They'll look to improve upon their 2-6 record away from Wrigley Field this weekend when they travel to Mall of America to face off against the Vikings.
Both teams are looking for their first win this season outside of their own buildings. The Vikings are 0-8 on the road while the Bears are also 0-8 on the road. This will be the first meeting between these two teams this year.
Minnesota is coming off a 26-20 loss to Washington. Running back Dalvin Cook left the game in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury. He was able to return to the field but did not finish the game. Out wide receiver Stefon Diggs suffered a shoulder injury during the defeat and is expected to miss some time. In the passing game, quarterback Sam Bradford was 18-of-38 for 198 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Defensively, the Vikings allowed 23 points off seven turnovers.
Chicago lost 27-10 to Green Bay. Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky suffered a collarbone injury during the defeat and could miss up to four weeks.
17-13 The Chicago Bears defeated the New York Giants 17-13 on Sunday, their second victory in as many games. It was also the first time that the Giants lost by more than 10 points this season.
The game started out slow with both teams only managing to muster up 13 total yards of offense in the first quarter. But then rookie running back Saquon Barkley got his hands on the ball and didn't let go ever since. He ended up having one of the best games ever by a rookie running back scoring four touchdowns in just three quarters. The first two scores came from 60 and 49 yards out respectively while his third touchdown came on a 91-yard drive that took all of seven minutes off the clock. His fourth touchdown was called back due to a penalty but he doesn't seem to mind as he has already moved on to talk about next week's game against the Eagles.
Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky played well considering he wasn't sure if he would be able to play after being hit in the leg early in the first quarter. He finished the game 26 of 42 for 301 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.
Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. had another great game posting six catches for 112 yards and a touchdown.
The conference record is the second tiebreaker for clubs from different divisions. The Bears are 5-5, while the Cardinals are 5-4, with games remaining against the Eagles, 49ers, and Rams at home and on the road, respectively. If the Bears win out they will finish with a 10-6 record and claim the first wild card spot; if the Cardinals win out, they'll have an 11-5 record and claim the first seed.
In the event that both teams end up with the same record, several factors are taken into account to determine the winner of the division title. The most important is head-to-head competition: if one team has won more games than the other, they're awarded the top spot in the NFC North.
Below are the other factors that are used to break ties between teams who are equal in division titles:
Division record: This counts twice, once for each team (for example, if each team has a 3-3 record against other division members, this factor would be tied between them).
Strength of schedule: Based on winning percentages against all other NFL teams. Here's how it works: if Team A beats Team B 56% of the time and loses to other teams 17% of the time, then Team A has a strength of schedule value of 59%.
The two clubs have played 120 times (including one postseason game), with the Chicago Bears winning 57 and the Minnesota Vikings winning 61. They've also tied twice. The all-time series is split 50–50 between Chicago's Wrigley Field and Minneapolis' Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.
Overall, the Bears are better than the Vikings—they're just really close. The Bears have won more games, but the difference in their margin of victory is about four inches. If you divide their wins by games played, they play about 1.5 seasons longer than the Vikings and win about 1.5 games more often.
Here are the all-time records: Chicago 49-47-1 (including one tie); Minnesota 52-46-2.
As you can see, the teams are pretty even when it comes to winning and losing. But the difference is how they do it. The Bears use defense first and run a conservative offense while the Vikings rely on the pass and beat you with big plays.
Both teams have had great running backs in recent years, but they don't overall have much of a advantage because each team's offensive line is pretty good. Neither team has a clear cut starter at quarterback yet they both turn over the ball too easily.
The Bears still have a chance to get a first-round bye. In fact, they still have a chance to finish as the No. 1, 2, 3, or 4 seed in the NFC playoffs. To catch the Saints, the Bears must win their final two games against San Francisco and Minnesota, while New Orleans must lose their final two games...
The Saints and Rams would have byes if the season ended today, while the Bears would host the Vikings and the Cowboys would host the Seahawks. The Bears still have a chance to get a first-round bye. In fact, they still have a chance to finish as the No. 1, 2, 3, or 4 seed in the NFC playoffs.
The top two seeds receive byes in the first round, while the third seed hosts the sixth seed and the fourth seed hosts the fifth seed. The Saints and Rams would have byes if the season ended today, while the Bears would host the Vikings and the Cowboys would host the Seahawks. The Bears still have a chance to get a first-round bye.
The Bears started the 2020 season on a high note, going 5-1. However, they went on to lose their next six games. The Bears won three of their final four games to complete the season 8-8. They will face the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card round.
The Bears have never beaten the Chicago Bears during the regular season. The teams have met every year since 1920 with the exception of 1944 when due to World War II there were no NFL games.
Overall, the Bears are 4-7 against the Chicago Bears and 7-4 against everyone else.
By virtue of the head-to-head tiebreaker, the Bears would receive the second seed and a first-round bye if they won and the Rams lost. If the Vikings win, they will be the sixth seed in the playoffs and will claim the last postseason berth over the Eagles due to the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Vikings would still receive a first-round bye even though they are not the highest remaining seed because they have more wins than the Bears.
If the Rams beat the Cowboys, then the Vikings would be eliminated from playoff contention because they would have less wins than the Bears (6 vs. 7).
However, the Vikings could make the playoffs as a wild card team if they win their final two games and the Bears lose or tie their finale against the Packers. In that case, the Vikings would hold the tiebreak over the Bears because they would have one more win than them. The Vikings would also receive a first-round bye because they already had that awarded to them when they were selected for the playoffs as the sixth seed.
If the Bears win and the Vikings lose or tie their finale, then there is no change in the standings because they would remain at seven wins per their current record.
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