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CHICAGO (AP) — Kirk Cousins threw for 225 yards and a touchdown in the first half and watched the rest of the way.
Cousins led three scoring drives as the Vikings (13-4) took a 16-6 lead at halftime. After being blown away in Green Bay last week, they kept control the rest of the way.
Holding down star Justin Fields (3-14), the Bears set a franchise record with 14 losses and broke the record by losing 10 straight games.
Houston’s 32-31 win over Indianapolis gave Chicago the number one pick in the draft for the first time since 1947.
Cousins bounced back from a rough outing, completing 17 of 20 passes and posting a glorious 130.2 rating. He hit his 66-yard completion over KJ Osborne on Minnesota’s first possession, set up his 4-yard touchdown to Adam Thielen, and even led his two scoring drives.
Nick Mullens came out in the third quarter and was 11-of-13 with 116 yards and interceptions. Osborne gained 117 yards on five catches.
Alexander Mathison scored 1-yard touchdowns in the second and third quarters.
Fields’ pursuit of an NFL single-season rushing record for quarterbacks ended when the Bears announced that he would miss a game that week due to a hip strain and that Nathan Peterman would start instead.
Peterman completed 11 of 19 passes for 114 yards and scored his first touchdown since Buffalo in 2018 in his fifth career start.
Tim Boyle played the second quarter and returned to the game late in the fourth quarter. He threw two interceptions and completed only two of his eight passes.
Velus Jones Jr. had a 42-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. The Bears finished with his 118 yards rushing, setting a franchise-record his 3,014 yards in a season, surpassing his 2,974 yards in 1984.
Plagued by a slow start, the Vikings took a 6–0 lead in just four plays on the first possession of the game.
Cousins hit a wide-open Osborne pass for 66 yards and passed to 4 yards before connecting with Thielen for a touchdown. Greg Joseph’s extra point was wide off to the right, recording his sixth mistake in 44 attempts.
Minnesota added to their lead early in the second quarter when Mattison scored from 1 to cap a 12-play drive.
Boyle, who played in Green Bay when the Bears’ offensive coordinator Luke Getzi was the Packers’ quarterback coach, took over Chicago’s fourth possession. He threw a long pass on third down, picked by Patrick Peterson with no receivers nearby, and returned it from 28 to 35 yards. Joseph kicked a field goal to make it 16-0.
Injury
Vikings: No injuries reported.
Bears: DB Elijah Hicks (concussion) ejected in the 3rd quarter. … WR Equanimeous St. Brown (knee) also injured.
next
Vikings: We’re hosting a wildcard game next weekend.
Bears: With the season over, general manager Ryan Pauls can turn his attention to Fields around him with the playmaker and protection he needs to improve his defensive line.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL
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