Troy Aikman reveals true feelings on Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams after Bears' choke job vs. Vikings on MNF

NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears - Source: Imagn
NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears - Source: Imagn

The Chicago Bears, under rookie head coach Ben Johnson, entered Monday Night Football with a sense of new hope. Quarterback Caleb Williams now had a full season's worth of pro experience under his belt, and Johnson's offensive genius promised a lot of success this year.

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However, after an exciting opening-week clash against the Minnesota Vikings, the Bears fell short, 27-24. It was Chicago's game to lose heading into the fourth quarter, having led 17-6. But the wheels quickly came off, as Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy, in his first NFL start, caught fire and hung 21 unanswered points on the Bears.

But despite the Bears' dramatic collapse, Dallas Cowboys legend Troy Aikman saw a lot of positives in Chicago's performance. Given the franchise's history at the bottom of the NFC North, its Week 1 result had a lot of optimism about it. Aikman spoke about it after the game on ESPN's "Monday Night Postgame."

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"I think they've got the right staff, and there's a lot of optimism right now," he said (from 1:45). "It looked good for a while. This is gonna be a tough loss, of course, but I do think this is different. I think fans will feel different, even though this is a devastating loss, as they've experienced at other times. Yeah, I would agree with what Joe said [about the optimism surrounding the Bears' outlook]."
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In line with Aikman's comments, there certainly are a lot of things for the Bears to be optimistic about, from stat lines to key performances in the game.

Looking at the positives from the Chicago Bears' Monday Night Football loss to the Minnesota Vikings

While the Bears would usually be bashed for an overall poor performance in primetime, Monday night showed a lot of promise.

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Chicago claimed the high ground early on with a Caleb Williams rushing touchdown in the first quarter. After that, they held a steady grip on the game heading into halftime, with a 10-6 lead.

The Bears carried that momentum into the second half, pulling away with a third-quarter score to extend their cushion to 17-6.

Barring their defensive meltdown in the final period, their offense remained fairly consistent. In the end, they led in time of possession, first downs, total yards and passing yards.

Williams completed 60.0% of his passes for 210 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, adding a score on the ground as the team's leading rusher as well.

Chicago Bears Nation! Check out the latest Chicago Bears Schedule and dive into the Bears Depth Chart for NFL Season 2024-25.

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Edited by Nicolaas Ackermann
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