Showered in Success: the Minnesota Vikings Win in Week 3 at the Chicago Bears

The Minnesota Vikings take their show on the road in Week 2 and beat NFC North rivals the Chicago Bears 9 to 3 on a wet day at Soldier Field.

After three hours playing on the muddy, rain-soaked turf at Soldier Field in Chicago, the Minnesota Vikings emerged with a 2-0 record to start their 2026 regular season, winning 9 to 3 over divisional rivals the Chicago Bears.

Both the Vikings and the Bears excited fans with downfield passing and double-digit leads in Week 1, but that was in good conditions where players could hold onto the ball and their footing. In contrast, Week 2 was all about running the ball, making defensive stops, and being disciplined, an assignment that Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell and defensive coordinator Brian Flores took to heart. Mostly.

Carson Wentz got the nod to start again in Week 2 after O'Connell announced on Friday that starting quarterback Kyler Murray had not yet cleared concussion protocols. Wentz ended the soggy outing 11/20 for 143 yard, no touchdowns, no interceptions, one fumble, and three sacks. Not surprising quarterback stats in a game where the Vikings leaned heavily on the running game.

Since Minnesota had placed Jordan Mason on Injured Reserve, veteran running back Aaron Jones was practically a one-man show, getting the vast majority of Week 2 carries. He toted the rock 105 yards on 23 attempts with a long of 20 yards in the third quarter. Newcomer DeeJay Dallas had 2 rushing attempts for 8 yards and a reception for 12.

Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores is not going to beat these defensive genius allegations any time soon.

After tormenting Packers quarterback Jordan Love in Week 1 with a shocking blitz rate near 80%, Brian Flores turned his attention to Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. Flores sought to create a containment bubble of Vikings defenders around Williams with the goal of keeping him in the pocket and forcing him to attempt to pass in the driving rain. Williams rushed for 42 yards on 5 attempts, threw for 138 yards, 15/26 attempts, was intercepted once, fumbled once, and was sacked 3 times.

Dallas Turner proved that his dominant Week 1 performance was no fluke. Not only will his visage haunt Caleb Williams, but he called game, pulling down Bears back-up quarterback Tyson Bagent as time expired and Chicago attempted a final shot at the end zone.

Minnesota Vikings OLB Dallas Turner continues to show that he's made a huge leap in Year 3, sacking Chicago Bears backup quarterback Tyson Bagent to end the game.

No one scored touchdowns on that water-logged field in Chicago. It was low-scoring, but, thanks to the efforts of Will Reichard, Minnesota made all three of the field goal attempts, even the one that bounced off the uprights.

Special teams turned in a solid performance with punter Brett Thorson flipping the field, Myles Price making the most of the free space he found in front of him, Isaiah Rodgers blocking a punt, and the rest of the unit containing well without committing costly penalties.

It was an ugly game--an ugly, messy game in miserable rain. But in the NFL not every win is going to get you style points. Sometimes you need to win an ugly game. The Minnesota Vikings did just that in Week 2, holding a team that had scored 59 points the week before to 3 points this week, on the road, in the rain, and with a backup quarterback.

Minnesota starts the season 2-0 over two NFC North opponents and now leads the division. Up next they host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3. SKOL.