Follow us:

How hot is Mike Zimmer's seat: 4. Hot seat

The Vikings have not missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons since Zimmer took over in 2014. If they don't make it this season, it's hard to see Zygi and Mark Wilf wanting to continue the course with Zimmer at the helm despite the coach having two years remaining on his contract. Zimmer's defense never truly bounced back in 2021 after the copious number of resources that were poured into retooling this once-vaunted unit, and the abundance of one-score games the Vikings have played in this season might make the Wilfs want to get off the roller coaster. -- Courtney Cronin

Kirk Cousins should have feasted on Monday night. The quarterback was facing a Bears team that was missing many of its defensive starters due to injuries and COVID-19 protocols, including its entire defensive backfield. But Cousins struggled mightily to move the ball against Chicago, finishing with two touchdown passes and a career-low 87 yards in the lackluster 17-9 win. That's consecutive subpar performances by Cousins, who simply needs to play better to get the Vikings to the playoffs and alter the perception that he's a stat compiler more than an actual winner under center. Yep, that's right ... this Sunday against the Rams: It's (yet another) Kirk Cousins Legacy Game!

They kept the Bears around Monday night, but found a way. They face a tough closing stretch of the season to try and lock up a playoff berth.

It's not all about QB Kirk Cousins, RB Dalvin Cook and WR Justin Jefferson. Minnesota leads league with 44 sacks and is first team in 47 years to record multiple sacks in each of its first 14 games.

Our gift to you: Three more games against the Bears. If the NFL is going to tinker with the schedule anyway (thanks, Omicron), why not just say it wants to minimize contact between teams and make the Vikings and Bears play each other for the remainder of the season? Three more games against Chicago gets Minnesota to 10-7 and into the playoffs. You can thank us later.