Defense at the forefront as Vikings travel to take on Bears

Minnesota's Everson Griffen celebrates a sack
Minnesota's Everson Griffen celebrates a sack against the Oakland Raiders during the second quarter of a game on Sept. 22 in Minneapolis.
Hannah Foslien | Getty Images

It's shaping up to be a defensive battle as the Minnesota Vikings travel to Chicago to take on the Bears on Sunday afternoon.

The two teams both are 2-1, and will be looking to keep pace with the Packers (3-1) and Lions (2-0-1 going into Sunday's game) in the NFC North. The game starts at 3:25 p.m.

MPR's Jeffrey Bissoy and John Wanamaker previewed the matchup of two teams that so far this season are boasting strong defenses and... not-so-strong passing games.

"Have you ever seen that meme where it's the two Spider-Mans looking at each other and pointing at one other? This is kind of the Chicago Bears and the Minnesota Vikings," Bissoy said.

"There are a lot of parallels... Defensively, both rank in the top 10. Offensively, get this — Chicago ranks 29th in passing yards (while) Minnesota ranks 31st. It's going to be a question of how well will the defenses hold each other, and how well will (Chicago quarterback Mitch) Trubisky and (Minnesota quarterback) Kirk Cousins come out there and play, and really who will have the above-sub-optimal game."

Other potential factors include the performance of Minnesota's offensive line, and how the teams' kickers will handle the conditions in the Windy City if the game comes down to field goals and extra points.

Listen to the full conversation at the audio player above.

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