Chicago Bears Rival Suffers Even Worse Setback Than Initially Feared

The Minnesota Vikings looked like the team to beat in the NFC North for the Chicago Bears through the first five weeks. A big reason for that was the play of their offense, racking up points at a fast clip. Unfortunately, one of their most vital pieces went down with a nasty-looking injury on Thursday Night Football. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw has established himself as one of the best in the league. Of all tackles who have logged at least 50% of the offensive snaps this season, he ranks 10th in pass-blocking and 8th in run-blocking.

Nobody can dispute he is a vital cog in their offense. So when he went down with an apparent knee injury in the loss to the Los Angeles Rams, experts believed he had an MCL issue based on footage. As it turns out, the damage was much more severe. Tests revealed that Darrisaw tore both his ACL and MCL, which must result in season-ending surgery.

The Chicago Bears' chances against Minnesota just went up.

Stopping the Vikings' offense was always going to be a vital part of beating them in the upcoming matchups later this season. That meant stopping the run and getting to Sam Darnold with the pass rush. Darrisaw has made that difficult for every opponent they have faced. Now Minnesota must rely on veteran backup David Quessenberry. The last time he started a full season, he allowed 46 pressures and 11 sacks. While he can be serviceable, this is a major downgrade for the Vikings. It will be a golden opportunity for the Chicago Bears defense to take advantage. The first meeting will be on November 24th at Soldier Field. That could be a pivotal game, particularly if the Bears lose the previous week to Green Bay. Winning it became a little easier.