The Vikings slept walked through the first half as they were down 16-0 before waking up in the third quarter.  The Vikings outscored the Bears 30-14 in the second half to get to O.T. where they lost.  Brett Favre was outstanding in this game completing 26 of 40 passes for 321 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Adrian Peterson led the way on the ground with 94 yards on 24 carries (3.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs and he also caught 3 passes for 43 yards (14.3 avg).  But, A.P. also lost a fumble in O.T. that set up the Bears for the game winning TD pass.  Chester Taylor pitched in with 29 yards rushing on 8 carries (3.6 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 26 yards (13.0 avg).  Bernard Berrian (3 rec, 58 yards), Sidney Rice (6 rec, 56 yards, TD) and Visanthe Shiancoe (4 rec, 40 yards, TD) all had decent games for the Vikings in the passing game last night.  The Vikings finished up with 423 total yards on offense (123 rushing, 300 passing) in this game.

The defense was awful last night for the Vikings.  Safety Madieu Williams (9 tackles) and LB Chad Greenway (9 tackles) were the busiest players on D for the Vikes last night.  CB Cedric Griffin also made some plays with 5 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 INT.  The Bears finished up with 363 total yards on offense (105 rushing, 258 passing) in this game.  The Vikings are now 11-4 on the season as this was a game they could not afford to lose.

The Vikings can make their move tonight as they can still gain the #1 seed in the NFC.  The Bears are unlikely to put up much of a fight tonight as the Vikings punished them 36-10 just four weeks ago in Minnesota.  The Vikings will likely look to kill the Bears will early in this football game with the running game led by Adrian Peterson.  The Bears are allowing 128.5 yards rushing per game and 4.4 yards per carry this season so A.P. could be in line for a huge game tonight.  The Vikings should also get Brett Favre back more involved in the offense tonight. 

The Bears’ offense scares no one so the Vkings’ D should have a field day tonight.  The pass rush should be able to force Jay Cutler into a few bad decisions resulting in turnovers.  The Vikings will likely key on stopping the Bears’ passing attack because there running game has been weak all year long.  Matt Forte has been a huge disappointment for them this season and he won’t do much against the Vikings tonight. 

PREDICTION:  VIKINGS 30, BEARS 10

24-year old DE Ray Edwards is having a solid season playing opposite of Jared Allen.  Edwards has played in 14 games for the Vikings this season and he has made 48 tackles, 6 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 2 passes defensed.  The Vikings need Edwards to keep up the good work because the Vikings’ pass rush is giving opposing teams a lot of fits this season.

23-year old Sidney Rice looked like he was sleepwalking during his first two years with the Vikings.  He played in 26 games in those two years catching 46 passes for 537 yards (11.7 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  But now, Rice is Brett Favre’s favorite target in the passing game and he could get him a invite to the Pro Bowl.  Rice has played in 14 games this season for the Vikings and he has caught 71 passes for 1,144 yards (16.1 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Rice should be a good receiver for a long time in this league and Brett Favre deserves the credit for bringing out the best in him.

It’s amazing to me that Coach Childress considered benching Brett Favre at halftime vs. the Panthers last week with the team winning 7-6.  Does he really think that Tarvaris Jackson would have given them a better chance of beating the Panthers last week?  If that is so, do the Vikings really want to keep a coach that thinks that way?  After all, Brett Favre has completed 312 of 460 passes (67.8%) for 3,565 yards with 27 TD passes and 7 INTs (104.1 QB Rating) so far this season.  Tarvaris Jackson has completed 10 of 15 passes (66.7%) for 159 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (124.0 QB Rating) in his limited playing time this season.  Brad Childress better get his head out of his butt.