MINNEAPOLIS _ The Vikings made sure not to leave their playoff fate to chance on Sunday afternoon. And now, they'll be able to take a week off.
They beat the Chicago Bears 23-10 on Sunday afternoon, limiting Chicago to 201 yards on offense. The win secured the No. 2 seed in the NFC for the Vikings, who won at least 13 games in a season for just the second time in franchise history.
The Vikings, who will have a first-round bye next week, will wait to see who they play in their first trip to the divisional playoffs since 2009.
Minnesota's offense was again limited to modest gains against a Bears defense that had allowed the third-fewest plays of 20 yards or more in the NFL. Two of the Vikings' longest three plays came on Chicago pass interference penalties of 25 and 27 yards. But while the Vikings could still lean on a running game that churned out 147 yards on 36 attempts, the Bears had no such success.
The Bears' six first-half rushing attempts netted a total of minus-1 yard. Their first play in Vikings territory didn't come until the 13:52 mark in the fourth quarter.
The Vikings, who took a shutout into the fourth quarter two weeks ago against the Bengals and blanked the Packers at Lambeau Field on Dec. 23, might have taken another zero into the fourth quarter if not for the Bears' second TD off punt-team trickery against the Vikings this season.
As Ryan Quigley lined up to punt in the second quarter, the Bears put Tarik Cohen back to return the kick, but stashed Bryce Callahan along the left sideline. The Vikings' punt coverage team followed the Bears' blockers toward Cohen, leaving Callahan alone to field Quigley's punt toward the sideline and return it 59 yards for a touchdown.
The score followed Pat O'Donnell's fake-punt TD pass in Week 5, and marked one more moment of special teams ingenuity in what figured to be John Fox's final game as the Bears' head coach. The Bears, however, could not pair an offensive touchdown with it.
Their first drive deep into Vikings territory stalled at the six-yard line, and Xavier Rhodes _ who'd needed to walk off a minor injury earlier in the series _ followed Dontrelle Inman across the field on fourth down, breaking up a strong throw from Mitch Trubisky and denying the Bears a touchdown on a crossing route.
Chicago's next possession, which started at the Vikings' 48, netted just 11 yards in five plays and ended with a field goal. Then, with just over two minutes to play, the Vikings mustered a goal line stand, stopping Trubisky's fourth-down pitch to Cohen at the 1-yard line.
