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JJ McCarthy threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes and ran for another in his long-awaited NFL debut, and the Minnesota Vikings rallied for a season-opening 27-24 win over the Chicago Bears on Monday night.
Chicago’s Caleb Williams had his first career rushing touchdown and threw for a score in Ben Johnson’s first game as the Bears’ coach.
McCarthy delivered down the stretch after struggling through the first three quarters. The Vikings and coach Kevin O’Connell are counting on the former Michigan star after he missed his rookie season due to a knee injury, and he delivered when it mattered on Monday.
Things weren’t looking good for McCarthy after Nahshon Wright returned an interception 74 yards for a touchdown to give Chicago a 17-6 lead in the third quarter. But the Vikings QB turned it around in the fourth.
McCarthy connected with Justin Jefferson for a 13-yard touchdown. His two-point conversion pass failed and the Vikings trailed 17-12. Minnesota then needed just three plays to grab the lead, with McCarthy throwing a 27-yard TD pass to Aaron Jones. The conversion pass to Adam Thielen put the Vikings on top 20-17 with 9:46 remaining.
McCarthy made it a 10-point game with about three minutes left when he faked a handoff and turned up the right side for a 14-yard touchdown run. Chicago then went 65 yards for a score, with Williams throwing a one-yard TD pass to Rome Odunze with just over two minutes remaining, but the Vikings hung on to beat the Bears for the eighth time in the past nine games.
McCarthy, drafted with the No 10 pick in 2024, completed 13 of 20 passes for 143 yards. He grew up in the Chicago area, and the first game he attended at Soldier Field was against the Vikings 18 years ago.
Williams, coming off a shaky rookie season after being drafted with the No. 1 overall pick, completed 21 of 35 passes for 210 yards and a score. The former Heisman Trophy winner also got his first rushing TD when he scored from the nine yards out in the first quarter.
Minnesota’s Will Reichard kicked two field goals, including a 59-yarder near the end of the first half that matched a Soldier Field record.
