The Vikings’ Jim McMahon left the game with a concussion late in the fourth period, but it was the Bears who wound up with their heads spinning Monday night.
Minnesota’s No.-1 ranked defense sacked Jim Harbaugh eight times and kept the Bears from converting a third down on its first 10 attempts en route to a 19-12 victory.
The Vikings (4-2) moved to within one-half game of NFC Central Division leader Detroit with the victory in front of 64,677 fans at Soldier Field. The Bears (3-3) had their three-game winning streak snapped while losing to the Vikings for the fourth straight time.
Trailing 19-12 in the final minute, the Bears had one last chance to tie, but Harbaugh’s pass was intercepted by Jack Del Rio at the goal line.
Rookie Curtis Conway returned the opening kickoff 55 yards to the Minnesota 47. After four plays, including a 21-yard pass from Harbaugh to rookie tight end Chris Gedney, the Bears settled for a 37-yard field goal by Kevin Butler at 12:53 of the first period.
The Vikings countered with a 39-yard field goal by Fuad Reveiz to tie the game 3-3 with 5:34 left in the opening period. Minnesota drove 60 yards in 11 plays, mainly on the running of rookie first-round draft pick Robert Smith.
The Bears turned the ball over just 17 seconds later when Gedney fumbled after a 5-yard reception. Del Rio forced the fumble and defensive back Carl Lee pounced on the loose ball.
The Vikings turned the turnover into a touchdown just 13 seconds later. Smith took a handoff from McMahon, cut left in front of Bears safety Shaun Gayle and sped 26 yards for a touchdown and a 10-3 lead.
The Bears pulled to within 10-6 on a 39-yard field goal by Butler with 10:49 left in the second quarter. An apparent 19-yard touchdown pass from Harbaugh to Neal Anderson was nullified because the Bears had an ineligible receiver downfield.
Earlier in the drive, Anderson scampered 31 yards to set up the score.
Butler tied a club record with a 55-yard field goal with 1:55 left in the half, making the score 10-9. Bob Thomas had booted a 55-yard field goal Nov. 23, 1975. Butler’s previous longest NFL field goal had been 52 yards. He once booted a 60-yard field goal for Georgia against Clemson.
Minnesota went up 13-9 with :13 left in the half after an 82-yard, 11-play drive. A 40-yard pass-interference penalty against cornerback Anthony Blaylock set up a 25-yard field goal by Reveiz.
The Vikings led 13-9 at halftime.
An interception by free safety Mark Carrier and a personal foul on the Vikings’ Cris Carter set up the Bears on the Vikings’ 33-yard line with 14:39 left in the third period.
Butler missed a 48-yard field goal, but the Vikings were offsides. From 43 yards away, Butler lined up for another attempt, but instead sprinted into the left flat on a fake. Holder Chris Gardocki took the snap and lobbed a pass to a wide-open Butler, who dropped the toss.
The next time the Bears got the ball, Harbaugh’s pass intended for Gedney was intercepted by Audray McMillian and returned 22 yards for a touchdown. Reveiz’s extra-point attempt, after a Minnesota holding penalty, was no good, leaving the Vikings ahead 19-9.
Butler added a fourth-quarter field goal to cut it to 19-12.
The Bears’ first-half offensive futility resulted in only four first downs. They were 0 for 6 on third-down conversions. It was not until a 7-yard pass from Harbaugh to Gedney early in the fourth period that the Bears converted on third down. They missed on their first 10 third-down tries.
Although veteran wide receiver Wendell Davis is out for the year after surgery on both knees, Conway was expected to give the Bears’ third-down offense a boost in his first NFL start.
“Wendell is a tough loss,” said Harbaugh before the game. “You hate to see anyone go down. Obviously, this makes Curtis Conway a very prominent guy in our thinking. He’s a guy we’re going to rely on to make plays.
“It doesn’t really change what we’re going to try to do. But the faces will change and expectations change for each one of those individuals.
“We felt like we had a lot of opportunities and plays we could have made against the Vikings last time, but didn’t.”
Tom Waddle had been the Bears’ most reliable third-down receiver entering Monday’s game. His 18 catches for 226 yards and one touchdown led the team coming in.
Harbaugh was 6 of 12 for 77 yards in the first half. He was sacked three times. McMahon was 9 for 16 for 69 yards in the first half.
Entering the game, the Bears had converted only 23 of 68 (33.8 percent) of their third-down plays, compared with their opponents’ 25 of 69 (36.2 percent).
The Bears went against the No. 1 defensive team in the NFL Monday night when they tried to succeed on third down.
“We like to play zone and rush the passer on third down,” said Vikings coach Dennis Green. “In that regard, we are very similar to the Bears. As long as we keep them in a long situation that is not a third-and-3 or third-and-4, we feel we have a good chance because we have a quick pass rush.
“We’re not a real big team. We rely a great deal on speed and movement. If we can get our speed and movement going, we have a chance on third down to stop the opponent and get our offense on the field.”
The Vikings ranked first in the NFL against the pass at 146 yards a game and had grabbed nine interceptions, including three by safety Vencie Glenn.
