The Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings squared off two weeks at Soldier Field. The Bears came away with the 28-10 victory, while they contained the Vikings passing attack.

Vikings QB Christian Ponder completed just 22 of 43 passes for 159 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He was sacked two times.

The Vikings passing attack was ineffective. The Bears did a solid job at rattling him at times in the Week 12 NFC North matchup.

However, the Bears need to generate more sacks and pressure from their defensive line because they haven’t been getting the production they like to see from their defensive line as of late.

The Bears’ defense currently ranks eighth in the NFL with 32 sacks on the season. They have produced 20 interceptions, 19 forced fumbles and 14 fumble recoveries.

Led by DE Julius Peppers (seven sacks) and DT Henry Melton (six sacks), the Bears’ defensive line has been successful at times this season. Israel Idonije and Corey Wootton have combined for 10 sacks as well.

Consistent pressure will only lead to good things for this defense. They strive off of pressure and when they fail to get that pressure it makes it tough on the back end for young safeties Chris Conte and Major Wright.

The Bears’ passing defense ranks seventh in the league allowing 216.2 yards per game. They forced two turnovers of QB Christian Ponder in Week 12 (one interception and one fumble) and one turnover of RB Adrian Peterson (one fumble).

Without WR Percy Harvin, the Vikings will certainly struggle to put together a solid performance in the passing game.

Adrian Peterson will be counted on to run the ball consistently like he has all season long. He averaged six yards per carry against the Bears in Week 12, when he ran 18 times for 108 yards.

The Bears’ defense will be playing to force Ponder to make plays with his arm, while they stack the box often to stop Peterson. With a consistent pass rush, the Bears’ defense can shut down both Ponder and Peterson.

The Vikings’ offense certainly seems one dimensional without Harvin, but if the Bears’ defense can’t generate a solid pass rush Ponder could beat them often.

Shutting down Ponder and the Vikings passing game will make everything easier for the Bears on defense on Sunday.

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.

The Chicago Bears have had a tough time with Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson since he came into the league in 2007.

The last time the Vikings beat the Bears in Chicago was in Peterson’s debut on October 14, 2007. He had 224 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries in the Vikings 34-31 win at Soldier Field that day.

In eight career games against the Bears, Peterson has 823 yards and 12 rushing touchdowns.

The Bears’ defense has kept him under 100 yards in his past four games against them. He has 90 yards and one touchdown in his past two games against them.

But he has been a beast this season.

He currently leads the NFL with 1,128 yards this season. His average of 112.8 yards per game puts him at the top of that category.

He has played five games with a sore left ankle and has rushed for more than 123 yards in four of those games with five touchdown runs.

The guy is just 11 months removed from tearing his ACL and MCL in his left knee and he’s arguably more powerful than ever.

The Vikings’ offense ranks third in the league with 150.5 yards per game, while rushing for an average of 5.2 yards per carry and 28.8 attempts per game.

The Bears’ defense ranks eight in the league in allowing 95.2 yards per game, while allowing an average 4.2 yards per carry and 22.7 attempts per game.

At 6-4, the Vikings are coming into this game with a mindset on earning their seventh win. They will likely be without wide receiver Percy Harvin (ankle), so they will be relying on the ground game plenty.

It will be a tough task for the Bears’ defense to shut down Adrian Peterson on Sunday, but they will have to contain him if they want to earn their eighth win of the season.

The Bears have been successful in bouncing back after big losses. They’ve gone 5-1 since 2008 after losing a game by 21 or more points.

It should be an interesting between two very good NFC North teams on Sunday at Soldier Field.

Adrian Peterson is always an impressive runner to watch. It’s a big matchup for the Bears’ defense. It should be viewed as a must win for both teams.

Here’s to hoping the Bears can contain Peterson enough to come up with a big victory.

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.

The Houston Texans (7-1) come to town on Sunday night. They have been a powerhouse so far in the AFC.

The Bears’ defense has been elite so far, but they will be facing some of the best talent on the opposite side on Houston.

WR Andre Johnson, TE Owen Daniels, RB Arian Foster are all playmakers this season for Houston.

QB Matt Schaub has found ways to get these guys the ball all season long.

Foster is first in the league in scoring with 11 touchdowns, fifth in rushing (770) and sixth in yards from scrimmage (847).

Its certainly going to be a tough task stopping the run and limiting big plays in the passing game by Houston.

Despite only reeling in two touchdowns this season, Johnson has 562 yards on 42 catches. He’s racked up three straight games with over 75 receiving yards.

He is a threat in the short passing game and in the deep passing game. He is 100% healthy which isn’t a good thing for the Bears’ defense.

TE Owen Daniels is second on the team with 37 catches for 478 yards and a team-high five touchdowns.

Houston has scored the fourth most points on the season (237), averaging 29.6 ppg and 371.8 ypg.

The Bears’ defense allows the second fewest points per game (15) and the sixth least yards per game (318.9 ypg).

This is going to be a tough battle for the Bears’s defense, who have been elite all season long.

This test should really show us what they’re made of.

Playing this game at Soldier Field, where it will be likely cold and windy is certainly an advantage over playing at Reliant Stadium indoors.

The Bears’ defense ranks 16th in the league in passing yards allowed per game (230.9). They will have their hands full with the Houston’s elite weapons in Johnson and Foster on Sunday night.

Safeties Major Wright and Chris Conte can’t allow the big plays because that will open everything up for Matt Schaub and Co.

The Bears’ secondary against the Texans’ receiving is certainly a matchup to keep your on in this big Sunday night matchup of two 7-1 teams.

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.

The Chicago Bears travel to Tennessee to take on the (3-5) Titans on Sunday. You may being saying to yourself that this should be another easy win for the Bears this Sunday.

Nothing is easy in this league.

The Titans have been showing signs of life over the past couple of weeks. Specifically running back Chris Johnson.

He has been the NFL’s leading rusher over the past five weeks with 550 rushing yards.

He started the season off slow being held to 24 yards or less in four of five games. Over the past three weeks however he has posted games of 91, 195 and 99 yards.

He is averaging 93.3 yards per game versus NFC opponents.

As well as quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has played over the last couple of years against the Bears (837 yards, six TD’s, 0 interceptions), the Bears main focus has to be stopping the run this Sunday.

The Bears don’t pride themselves on stats and awards handed out over a week’s or month’s span. Rather they base their performances off wins and points given up and so far its worked in their favor.

Despite allowing over 400 total yards to Carolina a week ago the defense allowed only 22 points to the Panthers, which included five field goals.

The Bears bring the best run defense in the NFL to Tennessee allowing a league low 77.9 yards per game and only one touchdown on the season.

The Titans rank just 25th in the NFL in run offense with an average of 91.2 yards per game and 4.4 yards per carry on the season.

Despite the low ranking, like mentioned before, Titans running back Chris Johnson has really returned to form lately.

But his latest success on the ground has come against lackadaisical run defenses in Buffalo, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh.

His most impressive performance came in a 38-14 loss to AFC powerhouse Houston, where he had 25 rushes for 141 yards.

The Bears’ defense has been shutting down the run this season better than anybody else and that’s a big reason why they sit atop the NFC North at 6-1.

With the likes of Houston, San Francisco, Minnesota and Seattle (a combined 21-10) coming up over the next four weeks the Bears can’t look past this game.

But at the same time they have to put another all-around performance together to help get this team ready for the tough schedule ahead.

The Bears’ defense has been the strongest part of this team, specifically the run defense.

They will need another shut down game against a hot running back in Chris Johnson this Sunday to preserve a 7-1 record heading into two straight weeks of prime time matchups (Houston, San Francisco).

It certainly won’t be easy, but the Bears have showed that they have what it takes to keep this winning streak going.

Pay attention to this matchup of Titans running back Chris Johnson against the Bears’ defense this Sunday.

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.

The Carolina Panthers are 24th in the NFL in total yards per game (335.5). Their 28th in the league in points per game (17.7), while holding a minus six in the turnover category.

Last season however, the Chicago Bears had a tough time containing a then rookie QB Cam Newton in 34-29 victory over Carolina.

Newton lit up the Bears at Soldier Field for 374 passing yards, 35 rushing touchdowns and three touchdowns (one passing, two rushing).

The Bears’ defense allows a league low (71.0) yards per game on the ground this season.

Newton has completed just 58.4 percent of his passes this season. He has tossed five touchdowns, six interceptions and has fumbled the ball five times.

He has had success running the ball this season. He’s ran 46 times for 273 yards and three touchdowns including a long of 40 yards.

The Bears’ defense has to contain Newton on Sunday because if not he will make them pay.

He is playing upset after last week’s loss to Dallas. He extends plays with his feet and he’ll be looking to do that plenty come Sunday.

His favorite targets this season have been receivers Steve Smith, Brandon LaFell and tight end Greg Olsen.

The Bears haven’t been great at matching up against opposing tight ends, so look for Greg Olsen to have a solid day against his former team.

Steve Smith has had success against the Bears in the past, but I think Charles “Peanut” Tillman is up for the task of covering him.

It’s pretty simple, if the Bears’ defense can limit Newton’s runs and force him to make bad throws they will likely come away with the victory.

As long as the Bears’ offense stays on the field and keeps their amount of turnovers down, the Bears’ defense could be that much better.

The less time the veteran Bears’ defense matches up against Newton and Co. the better for this entire team.

Cam Newton against the Bears’ defense for the second straight season should be interesting on Sunday.

The Bears won the matchup a year ago, but Newton kept it close.

Will the Bears allow Newton to play as well as he did a year ago?

It should be a fun one to watch.

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.