Bears vs. Vikings: Our experts make game picks for Week 15

The Chicago Bears (4-9) will battle the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football in Week 15, where Chicago is looking to snap a seven-game losing streak and win its first road game of the year.

The Bears are coming off an abysmal 38-13 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, where the team laid an egg in Thomas Brown's first game as interim head coach. The offense mustered just four yards and five punts in the first half before Caleb Williams led a couple of touchdown drives, where fellow rookie Rome Odunze had two scores. Meanwhile, the defense and new defensive playcaller Eric Washington were outclassed by Kyle Shanahan and an injury-riddled 49ers offense to a season-high 38 points.

Heading into this Week 15 matchup, the Bears are looking to end their seven-game losing skid in Brown's second game as interim head coach. Can Chicago finally get a win since the bye week? Our Bears Wire staff share their game picks for Monday night's matchup.

Alyssa Barbieri (7-6): Vikings 31, Bears 17

In all honesty, the Bears might not win another game this season, especially with three contending NFC North teams still on deck. While Matt Eberflus was a glaring problem, he wasn't the only one. The culture inside that locker room needs a complete overhaul, especially after that group -- that finally got what they wanted with Eberflus fired -- came out uninspired against an injury-riddled 49ers squad and got the doors blown off them.

In the previous meeting, the Bears battled back in the fourth quarter scoring 17 points to force overtime, although they ultimately fell short. While Justin Jefferson was held in check, Jordan Addison went off for 162 yards and tight end T.J. Hockenson bested them for 114 yards. Sam Darnold is coming off a five-touchdown game, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see another big outing for him, especially as this Chicago defense just hasn't been the same since that Hail Mary loss, which set this entire season spiraling.

Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams remains a bright spot, especially after how he bested Brian Flores and that Vikings defense in the Week 12 meeting. Can Williams replicate that success and help close the 2024 season out on a high note? It's certainly something to watch after interim head coach Thomas Brown failed to have his offense ready to go since stepping into his new role.

The Bears have now lost seven straight games after starting the season 4-2, where they still haven't won since before the Week 7 bye week. With a tough slate to close things out in 2024 -- and the current state of the locker room -- I find it hard to believe they're going to pull out another win -- especially on the road against a top NFC contender.

Brendan Sugrue (7-6): Vikings 30, Bears 20

There comes a point in every dismal season where the Bears buzz finally fizzles out. Sadly, that time has come for me in Week 15 after last Sunday’s flat performance against the San Francisco 49ers, and now, these last four games feel like a chore. Even with Caleb Williams providing one of the better seasons for a Bears quarterback we have seen in the last decade. That’s what a seven-game losing streak will do after there was so much hope just a short time ago.

It’s been two long months since this team won a game, and I don’t see it changing on Monday night. The Bears are coming off their worst game of the season, while the Vikings are coming off their best following a 42-21 win over the Falcons. They’re obviously a formidable team, boasting an 11-2 record, but they’ve shown that they have a real home-field advantage on offense. Sam Darnold has six more passing touchdowns at home vs. on the road while averaging four more points. With the Bears’ defense in disarray, the Vikings have a shot at running up the score after they already put up 30 points and 452 total yards of offense on them a few weeks ago.

For the Bears offense, this will be Williams’ first repeat opponent of the season. He managed to push Minnesota’s defense to the brink in their first meeting, but now that Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores has experience against him, will that be the case again? It’s hard for me to see that happening.

With all of the rumors, whispers, and articles coming out about Ryan Poles’ uncertain future, combined with the talk of losing from the players, this team needs a win in the worst way. Even on the brightest of days, you can almost see a literal cloud hanging over Halas Hall. Desperation can sometimes yield results, but I don’t think it happens this time. Minnesota is just too good, unfortunately. They successfully navigated their rebuild under a new regime that was implemented at the same time as Chicago’s and are nearing their second postseason trip in three years. The Bears, meanwhile, could be nearing their second front office implosion in three years. And this is why it's so difficult to get hyped for this prime-time matchup.

Lucas Hunt (6-5): Vikings 30, Bears 6

The Chicago Bears upended and stamped out the already fizzling embers of their season with their brutal, harrowing loss to the 49ers in Week 14. I could attempt to sell you fool’s gold and talk both you and I into a resurgent Bears team that will pull out all the stops to stay competitive in their second matchup against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night, but I am not some cruel, snake oil salesman. I’m honor-bound to transcribe the truth for our readers, so here’s a sobering dose of reality: Chicago will be thoroughly beaten on primetime television, and no one would fault you for doing better things with your Monday night.

My perspective could be seen as overly pessimistic, as the Vikings needed an extra period via overtime to subdue the Bears just two weeks prior. Rookie QB Caleb Williams played perhaps his best football of the year, and the defense was valiant in their effort to stifle high-octane playmakers. My retort is simple – you could be right. It’s possible Chicago can somehow reanimate themselves from their premature grave and put up a real fight. That line of thinking, however, is the benefit of the doubt you give teams that play a full 60 minutes, and then lose. That’s the sort of grace you bestow to a young team that knows this year isn’t their year, but they play their hearts out in spite of that inevitability. Let me ask you: is that the caliber of football team you saw last week against San Francisco? The dropped passes, whiffed blocks, missed tackles – are those the characteristics of a squad trending in the right direction? If we’re being honest with ourselves, it’s not; therefore, the Bears get no condolences or concessions from me.

Overall, the X’s and O’s come secondary when one of the participants of a football game doesn't have their heart in it. I’d love to get in the weeds of why starting running back D’Andre Swift could be an X-factor and slow the game to the Bears’ preferred pace, or how the defense can rectify their fatal flaw last week and stay on top of the Vikings’ emerging young star Jordan Addison, but schemes and gameplans mean nothing if the players are going through the motions. Chicago is thoroughly beaten and demoralized, and Minnesota will barely spare a glance for their rival as they race past them onto more impactful games.

Vinnie Parise (8-5): Vikings 28, Bears 10

The Chicago Bears have already played the Minnesota Vikings and it went about as poorly as you’d think. Matt Eberflus was still in charge which was a problem but that is no longer an issue. Still, there are other things keeping the Bears from taking another step the rest of the way. In this game against the Vikings, the main thing is getting Caleb Williams some game reps and praying that he stays on his feet.

It isn’t impossible for the Bears to land another top five draft pick and doing as much losing as possible the rest of the way is the path to doing that. They usually don’t have a problem losing so there’s no issue there. The Vikings will out coach and out play the Bears to hand them their 10th loss of the season.

Mike Pendleton (7-6): Bears 35 Vikings 31

Most times, the brain would outweigh the heart, but not this week. I still believe in Thomas Brown, and I believe there will be a much better display of effort at every level of the football team. Caleb Williams continues to progress in his development, and handled the Vikings blitz and pressure greatly in the first meeting, and I expect Brown and Williams to develop an even better gameplan this week.

At some point the Bears will have to play better in the first half. At some point, this team’s talent will show it is too good to keep losing in the ways that they have, whether embarrassing from coaches, or embarrassing from players. I don’t believe the Minnesota Vikings to be a long-term threat for the rest of the 2024 season and while their offense is rolling after a 42-point outing over the Atlanta Falcons last week, divisional games are always a bit tougher. The Bears have to make a statement, and I believe this is their best chance to steal a road victory. It will need to be a shootout, which I fully expect.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears vs. Vikings: Our experts make game picks for Week 15