Kyler Murray was a limited participant at practice today. That’s big. Somebody, I’m thinking, will be putting up good numbers for the Vikings on Sunday.
The Bears were impressive on Sunday, rolling to a 59-37 win at Carolina. But they were also unusually soft defensively, with the Panthers moving the ball all day. Bryce Young, despite his limitations, passed for 361 yards and 3 TDs while also running for a score.
If Young can put up those kind of numbers, it makes Minnesota’s passing game look promising. And that Murray or Carson Wentz, depending on who’s starting, a quarterback to think about. Certainly in a Superflex format.
Murray had one nice completion on Sunday but was knocked out of the game after only 5 pass attempts. But toss him out there against a lesser defense with no pass rush, and he should have a good day.
And if not Murray, then Carson Wentz looks oddly enticing. He came off the bench to manage 3 TDs against the Packers, along with a passer rating of 123.5. Wentz completed only 12 of 19 passes for 133 yards, but he was coming into the game off the bench. And here he’ll be facing a lesser defense.
Since the start of last year, opposing quarterbacks have averaged 235 passing yards against the Bears, with 34 TDs. Among quarterbacks who’ve started at least half the time, only seven have averaged better passing numbers (assuming standard fantasy scoring).
| STARTING QUARTERBACKS SINCE 2024 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | G | Yards | YPG | TD | Int | FPG |
| Matthew Stafford | 18 | 4,862 | 270.1 | 46 | 9 | 23.7 |
| Jacoby Brissett | 13 | 3,643 | 280.2 | 24 | 8 | 21.4 |
| Jared Goff | 18 | 4,770 | 265.0 | 36 | 8 | 21.3 |
| Brock Purdy | 10 | 2,372 | 237.2 | 23 | 11 | 21.1 |
| Dak Prescott | 18 | 4,727 | 262.6 | 32 | 11 | 20.2 |
| Drake Maye | 18 | 4,572 | 254.0 | 32 | 11 | 19.8 |
| Joe Burrow | 9 | 2,063 | 229.2 | 18 | 6 | 19.5 |
| Bears opp | 18 | 4,221 | 234.5 | 34 | 23 | 19.3 |
| Trevor Lawrence | 18 | 4,252 | 236.2 | 33 | 12 | 19.1 |
| Patrick Mahomes | 15 | 3,771 | 251.4 | 24 | 12 | 19.0 |
| Tyler Shough | 10 | 2,666 | 266.6 | 13 | 7 | 18.5 |
| Joe Flacco | 10 | 2,451 | 245.1 | 15 | 10 | 18.3 |
| Caleb Williams | 18 | 4,211 | 233.9 | 29 | 7 | 18.1 |
| Jordan Love | 16 | 3,768 | 235.5 | 25 | 7 | 18.0 |
| Justin Herbert | 17 | 3,936 | 231.5 | 27 | 14 | 17.9 |
| Daniel Jones | 14 | 3,267 | 233.4 | 20 | 9 | 17.4 |
| Josh Allen | 18 | 4,002 | 222.3 | 27 | 10 | 17.1 |
| Bo Nix | 18 | 4,062 | 225.7 | 26 | 12 | 17.1 |
| Sam Darnold | 18 | 4,061 | 225.6 | 25 | 14 | 16.8 |
| Jalen Hurts | 17 | 3,427 | 201.6 | 28 | 6 | 16.7 |
| C.J. Stroud | 15 | 3,315 | 221.0 | 21 | 8 | 16.7 |
| Baker Mayfield | 18 | 3,909 | 217.2 | 26 | 11 | 16.6 |
| Lamar Jackson | 14 | 2,873 | 205.2 | 22 | 7 | 16.5 |
| Aaron Rodgers | 17 | 3,543 | 208.4 | 25 | 7 | 16.3 |
| Bryce Young | 17 | 3,372 | 198.4 | 26 | 12 | 16.0 |
| Kirk Cousins | 9 | 1,804 | 200.4 | 13 | 7 | 15.8 |
| Tua Tagovailoa | 14 | 2,660 | 190.0 | 20 | 15 | 15.2 |
| Jaxson Dart | 13 | 2,502 | 192.5 | 18 | 5 | 15.2 |
| Michael Penix | 9 | 1,982 | 220.2 | 9 | 3 | 15.0 |
| Geno Smith | 16 | 3,240 | 202.5 | 19 | 17 | 14.9 |
| Cam Ward | 18 | 3,309 | 183.8 | 16 | 7 | 12.7 |
| J.J. McCarthy | 10 | 1,632 | 163.2 | 11 | 12 | 12.6 |
| Justin Fields | 9 | 1,259 | 139.9 | 7 | 1 | 10.1 |
Below are the quarterbacks who’ve started against Chicago since Ben Johnson showed up. The numbers are generally good, and they’d be a lot better with a harder schedule. (They’ve seen J.J. McCarthy twice, and they’ve played against Mason Rudolph, Shedeur Sanders, Spencer Rattler and Tyler Huntley). And recall that Jordan Love left a Chicago game early.
So I’m expecting credible production from either Murray or Wentz. Justin Jefferson should keep things rolling, and T.J. Hockenson should be a decent tight end. Jordan Addison didn’t catch a pass on Sunday, but I think he’s still a starter-worthy guy.
Minnesota’s passing game in general also should be helped along by the Jordan Mason injury; they placed him on IR today.
—Ian Allan
