CHICAGO– The Minnesota Vikings understand that the Chicago Bears are trying to keep a season that is in danger of slipping away completely out of reach.

Forgive them for being a little wary.

“This league is all about reaction, and when you have teams that go through those situations and face adversity, it’s always about reaction,” safety Josh Metellus said. “This could make or break them.”

The Vikings (8-2) hope to “break” the Bears (4-6) and perhaps gain ground in the NFC North on Sunday in a matchup between teams heading in opposite directions.

Minnesota comes in with three straight wins after beating Tennessee 23-13 last week as Sam Darnold threw for two touchdowns and ran for a score. The Vikings are trying to catch Detroit (9-1) for first place and stay ahead of Green Bay (7-3) in a tight division. The Lions visit Indianapolis on Sunday, while the Packers host San Francisco.

The last-place Bears are reeling with four straight losses after losing 20-19 to Green Bay at Soldier Field last week.

They were in a position to end a ten-match losing streak against their rivals but allowed the lead to slip away in the dying minutes. They fell short when Cairo Santos’ 46-yard field goal was blocked as time expired, their second loss in a last-second game in the past four weeks. The streak started when Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders defeated them on a Hail Mary.

On the plus side for Chicago, the offense played better against Green Bay in Thomas Brown’s first game as coordinator after Shane Waldron was fired. No. 1 draft pick Caleb Williams bounced back, throwing for 231 yards and running for a career-high 70 after struggling the past three weeks.

“There will be tough times, tough times in the long, healthy career that I hope I have,” he said. “That won’t change my way of thinking, and it won’t change it now.”

Grounded Vikings

The Vikings had just 33 rushes for 82 yards against the Titans last week, a season-worst 2.5 yards per attempt, and they have especially struggled in short yards this year.

According to Sportradar, the Vikings are the worst team in the NFL in terms of rushing plays from the 1-yard line with six attempts for a net of 5 yards. Their only touchdown in those situations came on Darnold’s sneak last week.

Don’t think running back Aaron Jones didn’t notice.

“I’d like to get back in there,” Jones said. “I talked to my son about it, talked to my mom, talked to everyone. I talk to everyone about it, I just try to talk it out, I do the work on the field to be able to get back in there. I miss it. Let’s just say that. I miss it. I’m missing the end zone, so I’ll be back soon.”

Tight losses

The loss to Green Bay was just the latest for Chicago in a long line of close games during Eberflus’ two-and-a-half seasons. They are 2-4 in one-possession games this year and 5-17 during his tenure.

“The record is not where it should be in one-score games, we know that,” Eberflus said. “Again, we’re so far away. A lot of good things happen during those games. We just have to learn how to finish better as a group.”

Stay at home

Last week against the Titans, the Vikings stopped quarterback Will Levis on five designed runs for a net of 6 yards. He scrambled twice for another 12 yards in an attempt to avoid pressure that led to five sacks. The Vikings are wary of the athleticism and elusiveness that Williams brings to the Bears, a unique dimension that should test their top-ranked defense.

“His mobility isn’t talked about enough. He can escape the pocket and make a lot of plays with his legs, so we have to rush accordingly and try to keep him in the pocket,” Vikings outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel said. “You don’t want to be scared, but you definitely have to be smart.”

Smooth operators

The Bears used more quick passes and pre-snap moves against Green Bay, creating some mismatches and giving Williams more time to read the defense.

He also got the play call in his helmet faster, giving him more time to figure out what the other team was doing.

It all led to the Bears finishing with 391 yards and converting 56.3% on third downs. It didn’t hurt to rush for 179 yards, although the Bears could be a key weapon if running back D’Andre Swift misses the game due to a groin injury.

Youngest up to 100

Bears linebacker Tremaine Edmunds will make history. Assuming he plays on Sunday, he will become the youngest NFL player to appear in 100 games – at 26 years and 206 days old.