Detroit Lakes, MN (KDLM) – The Vikings leaned on their defense and kicker Will Reichard to beat the Chicago Bears 9-3 Sunday at a rain-soaked Soldier Field. Neither offense found the end zone, and Minnesota relied on three field goals from Reichard to secure the win.
Reichard opened the scoring with a 35-yard kick, Chicago answered with a 50-yarder from Cairo Santos, and Reichard hit from 49 yards in the second quarter to give Minnesota a 6-3 halftime lead. His third field goal, a 39-yarder, bounced off the right upright and through to put the Vikings up 9-3 with 1:09 left. Reichard has now made 23 field goals in a row, and it was the lowest-scoring game in Vikings-Bears history.
The Minnesota defense held a Bears team that put up 59 points at Carolina in Week One, the highest-scoring season opener in NFL history, to a single field goal. Chicago turned the ball over twice, including a D’Andre Swift fumble at the Vikings’ one-yard line. Isaiah Rodgers recovered a fumble and blocked a late field goal try, knocking down what would have been a game-tying 23-yard attempt with 6:21 left.
That kick came just after the Bears lost their starting quarterback. Caleb Williams hurt his hamstring on a fourth-quarter scramble, went down without being touched, and was carted to the locker room. Backup Tyson Bagent drove Chicago into the red zone in the final minute, but Dallas Turner ended it with a sack of Bagent on the last play. Turner had two of Minnesota’s four sacks.
On offense, Aaron Jones ran for 105 yards on 23 carries, and Carson Wentz didn’t turn the ball over in the slick conditions. Justin Jefferson’s 30-yard catch on the opening drive moved him past Randy Moss into second place on the Vikings’ all-time receptions list with 588.
The win was Minnesota’s seventh straight at Soldier Field, matching the franchise record for consecutive road wins over a division opponent. The Vikings are 2-0 for the first time since 2024 and hold an early lead in the NFC North.
Minnesota visits the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday, September 27th.
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