Bears beat Vikings 19-17 on Cairo Santos' 48-yard FG as time expires

Sean Hammond, Chicago Tribune on Nov 16, 2025

Published in Football

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MINNEAPOLIS — Cairo Santos made a 48-yard field goal as time expired to give the Chicago Bears a 19-17 win over the Minnesota Vikings Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Santos’ field goal came moments after the Vikings took the lead on a 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback J.J. McCarthy to wide receiver Jordan Addison. That score put the Vikings ahead 17-16 with 50 seconds remaining.

But Devin Duvernay’s 56-yard kickoff return put the Bears immediately into field-goal range, setting up the opportunity for Santos to win the game. Santos, who missed his previous try, made the 48-yard kick and finished his day 4 for 5 on field-goal attempts.

It wasn’t pretty by any means, but the Bears scratched and clawed their way to their seventh win in eight games after watching a 16-3 lead slip away in the fourth quarter. They improved to 7-3 on the season and avenged their Week 1 loss to the Vikings.

Two first-half interceptions helped the Bears build their lead. Safety Kevin Byard III and cornerback Nahshon Wright picked off McCarthy in the first half.

Byard’s interception came midway through the second quarter and set up a 38-yard field goal by Santos. Wright’s interception came in the final minutes of the second quarter with McCarthy targeting Addison in the end zone.

Wright, whose junior college coach, John Beam, was shot and killed last week in Oakland, Calif., appeared to have an emotional moment in honor of Beam.

The Bears offense punted on its first three possessions before a breakthrough in the second quarter. Quarterback Caleb Williams led the Bears on a 15-play, 74-yard drive capped by rookie Kyle Monangai’s 1-yard touchdown run.

The Bears sent in Monangai at running back and rookie tackle Ozzy Trapilo as a sixth offensive lineman on first-and-goal from the 1. The jumbo package worked as intended, opening sizable hole for Monangai to burst through for his third career touchdown.

Williams finished 16 of 32 for 193 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. He was sacked twice. Running back D’Andre Swift totaled 90 yards on 21 carries.

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