CHICAGO _ The masterpiece was complete. Another one. The Bears defense had absolutely demoralized the Vikings at Soldier Field on Sunday afternoon, propelling a shockingly easy 16-6 win.
Six sacks. One takeaway. A third consecutive victory.
Thus, when the Club Dub dance party ended and the locker room lights came back on, members of the Bears defense described just how energizing and fulfilling their workday had been.
Danny Trevathan knew the Vikings had every intention of steamrolling the Bears with their league-best rushing attack. Yet the Vikings left Chicago with too many bumps and bruises to count.
"We're the No. 1 rushing defense for a reason," Trevathan said. "And they came to our house. We take pride in that."
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who pushed to join this bunch in free agency six months ago, acknowledged this has been every bit as fun as he expected.
"This game's about making plays," the veteran safety said. "I tell you this all the time. We're not here to make the honor roll, we're here to make plays. And when you see guys making plays so consistently man, it's fun. It's fun to watch."
Khalil Mack? He feels this defense's dominance building week after week and he's enjoying the adrenaline rush.
"We're warming up," Mack said. "We're warming up, man. We're looking forward to next week already."
Is it too late to mention the Bears were without Pro Bowl defensive tackle Akiem Hicks and emerging standout Roquan Smith on Sunday? Isn't it only appropriate to mention that the Bears players who did play didn't spend much time worrying about the ones who, for whatever reason, couldn't?
"There's a level of expectation, man," Mack said. "It's a standard that's been set. These guys held it down for me when I was out (with an ankle injury) last season. So the expectation is for me to hold it down and everybody else to hold it down while (these other guys) are out. That's what you want to see, man. You want to see guys stepping in there even when the odds are against you in a sense."
A few moments later, the usually understated Mack let his smile grow as large as it wanted to and let his excitement fly. Everyone knew just how good the players on the top line of the Bears depth chart were. Sunday became a showcase of depth.
"You've got too many guys (stepping up)," Mack said with that huge grin. "We've got white Nick, black Nick. Oh man! ... There are so many guys stepping in there and doing their job and doing it at a high level."
Indeed, Nick Kwiatkoski filled in for Smith and led the Bears with nine tackles Sunday. Two were for a loss, including a third-quarter strip-sack. Defensive lineman Nick Williams _ helping to plug the hole Hicks' absence left _ had two more sacks and recovered a fumble that Mack forced to start the second half.
The Bears defense held the Vikings to 100 total yards through three quarters. Dalvin Cook, who came into the day averaging 125 rushing yards per game and 6.6 yards per carry, managed just 35 yards on 14 rushes.
Cook was smothered all day. Same goes for Kirk Cousins (27-for-36, 233 yards), who never seemed even remotely comfortable in the pocket and had the ball stolen from his grasp on the opening series after halftime when Mack did Mack, bending around and under left tackle Riley Reiff and again attacking the quarterback's arm.
"What I saw?" Mack said. "I saw the ball. I wanted to get him and I got him. And then I saw Nick grab the ball. You see what I'm saying? Big Nick stepping in there again."
Technically, that was one of two Bears takeaways Sunday. But an argument can be made that they also took away the Vikings' spirit. They took away their poise. They took control of the game early. And once again, they sparked a win in which the Bears never trailed.
Sunday's win was so one-sided that the anxiety surrounding Mitch Trubisky's serious shoulder injury seemed greatly diminished as the sun went down behind Lake Shore Drive. Sunday's win was so impressive that the Bears' last game in their home stadium _ a 10-3 Week 1 loss to the Packers _ seemed like a distant memory.
Sunday's win seemed to be a reminder that an elite defense is hungry and improving and capable of regrouping quickly when left short-handed.
All in all, it was a major statement in a big-stage game.
