Bears vs Vikings: Inside the snap counts, stats, and more

This was such a weird Chicago Bears game to watch. It felt like preseason, but the stakes were extremely high, so I was completely invested. This was also the first game I ever actively rooted for Chicago to lose, which felt wrong, but after Lovie Smith and the Texans pulled out the win, everything felt right.

We'll have plenty of offseason coverage here at Windy City Gridiron, over at our podcast channel, and also on our 2nd City Gridiron video channel in the coming months, but there's one final game to wrap up.

The Minnesota Vikings won the game 29 to 13, and they outgained the Bears 482 yards to 259, they had more first downs (12 to 45), a better third down conversion (54.5% to 22.2%), and more time of possession (36:36 to 23:24). BUt this was an empty the bench game for the Bears, and while the coaches and players wanted a win, the loss was always the most likely outcome.

Now let's take a closer look at the playing time breakdowns for the Bears and also some individual stats.

OFFENSE

Nathan Peterman led the Bears in passing with 114 yards on 11 for 19 passing, with 1 touchdown, and a passer rating of 92.9, while adding 2 runs for 7 yards.

Khalil Herbert had 10 runs for 50 yards, and he caught 1 for a loss of a yard.

Velus Jones Jr. had a run for 42 yards and a TD, plus a 28-yard catch,

David Montgomery may have played his last game in Chicago, and he did so with 7 rushes for 21 yards.

Cole Kmet had 4 receptions, 57 yards, and a TD.

Braxton Jones took every snap on offense for the Bears during the season.

DEFENSE

Joe Thomas had 14 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery.

Jaquan Brisker and Elijah Hicks had 10 tackles each, with Brisker adding a pass defended and Hicks adding a forced fumble.

Harrison Hand had 0 tackles and a forced fumble.

Greg Stroman Jr. had 8 tackles and an interception. Justin Jones

Justin Jones had 2 tackles and 3 TFL.

SPECIAL TEAMS*

*The above image has players that only played in the third phase.

Cairo Santos hit his only extra point.

Trenton Gill punted 3 times for a 37.0 average while placing 2 inside the 20-yard line.

Velus had a 20.5 kick return average on 4 returns.

To check out the complete Bears vs Vikings box score, I find that ESPN has an easy-to-navigate site.

All statistics and snap counts are taken directly from the NFL's Game Statistic and Information System, as are the accompanying pictures.