CHICAGO -- A week of preparation and film study led the Bears to devise a defensive game plan centered around stopping the formidable Minnesota Vikings' rushing attack and putting the onus to win the game on rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
Mission accomplished.
The 10th ranked rushing offense (119.3) heading into Week 11, the Vikings ran the ball for only 48 yards (Minnesota technically rushed for an additional 48 yards on a successful first half fake punt), while Bridgewater managed to pass for only 158 yards on 28 attempts in frigid conditions at Soldier Field.
“You have to force them to be one-dimensional,” Bears defensive end Jared Allen said. “Some of the stuff they did was a little more traditional, which played to our strengths, I think. The little zone read stuff that they do; we’ve seen it so much this year that’s kind of become second nature to us. We knew that if we could be successful on early downs and force negative plays, then we could force the ball in Teddy [Bridgewater’s] hands. He’s a good quarterback, but he’s young and you have to take advantage of that. You have to force him to be uncomfortable and force him to make plays that maybe he isn’t comfortable making. That was our game plan, and guys all across the board played well.”
Allen delivered his most impactful game of the year (five tackles, one sack and one tackle-for-loss) versus his old team, albeit at the expense of struggling Vikings left tackle Matt Kalil -- rated as one of the worst NFL offensive tackles, according to Pro Football Focus.
“I made sure to stay out of the way after Jared got that sacked so we weren’t in the picture at the same time,” Bears defensive end Willie Young said. “For Jared to come away with that sack, knowing how long he played there in Minnesota, I was speechless. I kind of froze for a moment when he did his sack celebration. That’s a signature move for him, you know.”
Allen performed his sack ritual a minimum 11 times in each of his six seasons in Minnesota, but the 11-year veteran only had 1.5 sacks in a Bears’ uniform before Sunday.
One reporter, apparently unfamiliar with Allen’s celebration, wondered if the defensive end had changed up his routine in anticipation of facing the Vikings.
“Nope. Same old sack dance I’ve been doing for 11 years,” Allen said. “But reach for the story. I like it. I was a mass communication major [in college] too.”
