KEY MATCHUP
Vikings running back Dalvin Cook returns to Soldier Field on a similar roll as last season — back-to-back games of 163 yards (5.4 avg.) and three touchdowns against the Packers and 206 yards (9.4 avg.) and two touchdowns against the Lions. He leads the NFL in yards per game (122.6) and rushing touchdowns (12) and is averaging 6.0 yards per carry.
“He has no weakness in his running game,” Bears safety Tashaun Gipson said. “He can run through you, can run around you or he can make you miss. Those things are challenging in any type of running back when you get a guy that’s that dynamic.”
Bears linebacker Roquan Smith is on a similar role on the defensive side — 11 tackles, a sack and two tackles-for loss against the Titans as he continues to emerge as a Pro Bowl candidate.
“He’s fast and physical. He can cover. I don’t think there’s a linebacker [in the NFL] that’s playing better than him,” Gipson said. “[The] dude has no weaknesses in his game.”
TRENDING
Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins got over the big-game hump when he beat the Saints in a wild-card game last year. Now he has another daunting hurdle to clear — Cousins is 0-9 on Monday Night Football in his career, including losses to the Seahawks (276 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, 87.2 rating) and Packers (122 yards, one touchdown, one interception, 58.8 rating) last December.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Vikings rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson, a first-round draft pick, has been an immediate hit, with 34 receptions for 627 yards (18.4 avg.) and three touchdowns. But Bears fifth-round rookie Darnell Mooney also has been impressive — 31-348, 11.2, two touchdowns — and on paper has the easier degree-of-difficulty against a Vikings defense that ranks 30th in the NFL in pass defense and has allowed and NFL-high 11 receptions of 38 yards or more this season.
Mooney was targeted 11 times by Nick Foles against the Titans last week, with five receptions for 43 yards. He had five receptions for 69 yards the previous week against the Saints, including a 50-yard catch. So the Foles-Mooney connection is on the upswing, with the potential for a breakout game.
X-FACTOR
Bears offensive coordinator Bill Lazor will be calling plays for the first time this season after coach Matt Nagy decided to give up the role in an attempt to boost his 29th-ranked offense. Lazor previously has called plays for the Dolphins (2014-15) and Bengals (2017-18).
The absence of running back David Montgomery (concussion) complicates matters for Lazor, it’s not unusual for moves like this to provide an immediate, if temporary, boost. When Lazor took over as coordinator in Cincinnati in 2017, the Bengals scored touchdowns on two of their first three possessions against the Packers in a 27-24 overtime loss at Lambeau Field. Facing a rebuilding Vikings defense could be a playable situation for Lazor.
