MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -After Minnesota stuffed Chicago on four tries from the 1, Gus Frerotte threw a 99-yard touchdown pass to Bernard Berrian to help the Vikings take a 17-7 lead over the Bears after two quarters Sunday night.
pped short on second down, fullback Jason Davis was kept out on third down and, then Pat Williams, Chad Greenway and Jared Allen swarmed to Forte on fourth down to help the Vikings avoid falling behind 14-3 with first place in the NFC North on the line.
On the very next play, Frerotte dropped into his own end zone, looked right and then found Berrian all alone down the left sideline. Cornerback Charles Tillman thought Berrian was going to run a post and drifted toward the middle of the field, but Berrian kept going straight down the sideline on a fly pattern.
Frerotte hit him in stride, and Berrian easily won a foot race to the end zone to electrify an amped-up Metrodome and give the Vikings a 10-7 lead.
It was the 11th 99-yard pass play in NFL history and the longest offensive play in Vikings history, besting an 89-yarder from Fran Tarkenton to Charley Ferguson in 1962.
The stand and subsequent scoring strike completely shifted the momentum in a game the Bears controlled for the first 23 minutes.
The Bears took the lead in the first quarter when Devin Hester turned a quick slant into a 65-yard touchdown reception from Orton.
nless on the turf and Vikings coach Brad Childress screaming for a penalty.
No flag was thrown, and Minnesota had to settle for a 23-yard field goal by Ryan Longwell after having first-and-goal from the 6-yard line to cut Chicago’s lead to 7-3 early in the second quarter.
After Berrian’s big play, Chicago was forced to punt on its ensuing possession and Minnesota took the ball with 2:36 to go in the first half. The Vikings sprinkled a couple of Adrian Peterson runs around four passes from Frerotte for 41 yards, and the old man sneaked it in from the 1-yard line to cap the drive.
Berrian, the former Bear, had three catches for 118 yards and the TD in the first half while Peterson continued to gash the Chicago defense.
Peterson entered the game with 423 yards rushing and seven touchdowns in three career games against the Bears.
Despite the Bears throwing everyone near the line of scrimmage to slow Peterson down, the dynamic running back had a 59-yard run en route to 100 yards on 14 carries in the first half.
Orton completed just 5 of 16 passes for 105 yards and the score in the first half while Forte had 63 yards on 14 carries.
With the way the rest of the conference is shaping up, it’s looking more and more like the North will only have one representative in the playoffs – the division winner.
at the schedules for both teams would appear to give the Bears the edge in the final month of the season.
This game in Minnesota was the third straight on the road for the Bears, who will enjoy most of December at home with games against the Jaguars, Saints and Packers at Soldier Field before they wrap up the regular season at Houston on Dec. 28.
The Vikings go to Detroit and Arizona in the next two weeks and finish up with the surprising Falcons and the beasts of the NFC – the New York Giants – at home.
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