Minnesota quarterback Teddy Bridgewater put up a 152.7 passer rating in the first half, the highest for him in any half of his career, completing 11 of 14 passes for 156 yards and 2 touchdowns.
For the Bears, it got worse.
Bridgewater threw just 20 passes, completing 17 of them, four for touchdowns, all for 231 yards, precisely the total of Jay Cutler. But the Bears intercepted none of them, and Bears DB’s did not get a hand on any of them (linebacker Pernell McPhee had the only pass breakup, that on a pass rush).
Alan Ball lost Stefon Diggs in coverage, then he and safety Chris Prosinski were embarrassed in failed attempts at tackles as the wide receiver went 33 yards for a score after a Bears turnover to open the third quarter. The breakdowns, just a couple of many on the day, put the Bears down 24-7 and out of any realistic shot at an upset.
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Tracy Porter allowed Diggs to get a step on him down the left sideline and take in a 15-yard Bridgewater pass for a touchdown in the first quarter, the first touchdown by Diggs since his game-tying score in the first Bears game.
Prosinski failed to make a one-on-one tackle of running back Jerick McKinnon, who extended Minnesota’s first possession with a 25-yard pickup on a completion well underneath the Bears’ coverage. Prosinski also was woefully late providing deep-middle coverage on a 34-yard completion to wideout Mike Wallace, who had easily run by Shea McClellin early in the route.
NFL
“We did not execute, since one of their leading receivers went unnoticed across the whole field,” coach John Fox said. “It’s not by design. There were a number of those types of plays today where we did not execute well defensively."
Moon's Grade: F