NFL game summary for 09/25/1978:
First quarter touchdowns by wide receiver Sammy White and linebacker Matt Blair gave the Vikings an early lead. White started the scoring on a pass from Fran Tarkenton, and Blair took a lateral from defensive tackle Mark Mullaney, who recovered a Bob Avellini fumble. The Bears narrowed the gap to 14-13 early in the third period, but the Vikings put together a 69-yard drive to extend their lead. Minnesota limited the Chicago offense to just 90 yards rushing as the Bears suffered their first defeat of the season.
Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):
| Team | Rush Yds/Gm | Pass Yds/Gm | Tot Yds/Gm | Turnovers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | OFFENSE | 109.7 (24) | 173.3 (12) | 283.0 (18) | 14 |
| DEFENSE | 110.7 (6) | 125.0 (8) | 235.7 (5) | 8 | |
 | OFFENSE | 163.3 (7) | 97.0 (24) | 260.3 (23) | 3 |
| DEFENSE | 145.7 (14) | 114.3 (5) | 260.0 (7) | 8 |
Line: Bears by 3
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Vikings (2-2-0) | 14 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 24 |
| Chicago Bears (3-1-0) | 7 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 20 |
( 7- 0) MIN Sammy White 33 yard pass from Fran Tarkenton (Rick Danmeier kick) (14- 0) MIN Matt Blair 49 yard ?(Rick Danmeier kick) (14- 7) CHI Walter Payton 3 yard rush (Bob Thomas kick) (14-10) CHI Bob Thomas 27 yard field goal (14-13) CHI Bob Thomas 32 yard field goal (21-13) MIN Chuck Foreman 1 yard rush (Rick Danmeier kick) (24-13) MIN Rick Danmeier 29 yard field goal (24-20) CHI Walter Payton 1 yard rush (Bob Thomas kick)
MIN CHI
First Downs: 17 23
Rushes-yards: 39-153 36-90
Yards/rush: 3.9 2.5
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 14-20-152-1 22-37-207-2
Sacked-yards: 1-10 2-19
Net pass yards: 142 188
Net yards/pass: 6.8 4.8
Total net yards: 295 278
Total plays: 60 (65% run) 75 (48% run)
Yards/play: 4.9 3.7
Fumbles-lost: 1-1 3-1
Turnovers: 2 3
Penalties-yards: 13-86 5-64
Attendance: 53,561
Passing:
MIN: Fran Tarkenton, 14 of 20 for 152 yards and 1 TD (1 int) CHI: Bob Avellini, 22 of 36 for 207 yards (2 int); Bob Parsons, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
Rushing:
MIN: Rickey Young, 17 for 81 yards; Chuck Foreman, 17 for 73 yards and 1 TD; Robert Miller, 2 for 0 yards; Fran Tarkenton, 2 for -2 yards; Brent McClanahan, 1 for 1 yard CHI: Walter Payton, 24 for 58 yards and 2 TDs; Roland Harper, 10 for 31 yards; Bob Avellini, 2 for 1 yard
Receiving:
MIN: Sammy White, 6 for 82 yards and 1 TD; Rickey Young, 3 for 17 yards; Ahmad Rashad, 2 for 25 yards; Bob Tucker, 2 for 21 yards; Brent McClanahan, 1 for 7 yards CHI: Golden Richards, 6 for 76 yards; Roland Harper, 6 for 33 yards; Walter Payton, 4 for 37 yards; Greg Latta, 4 for 35 yards; James Scott, 2 for 26 yards
Kick returns:
MIN: Kevin Miller, 2 for 55 yards; Sammy White, 1 for 20 yards CHI: Mike Morgan, 3 for 63 yards; Len Walterscheid, 2 for 49 yards
Punt returns:
MIN: Kevin Miller, 2 for 7 yards CHI: Steve Schubert, 1 for 8 yards
Interceptions:
MIN: Bobby Bryant, 1 for 19 yards; Tom Hannon, 1 for 0 yards CHI: Doug Plank, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
MIN: Mike Wood, 2 for 80 yards CHI: Bob Parsons, 3 for 115 yards
Field Goals:
MIN: Rick Danmeier, 1/1 CHI: Bob Thomas, 2/2
MIN: Fran Tarkenton, 14 of 20 for 152 yards and 1 TD (1 int) CHI: Bob Avellini, 22 of 36 for 207 yards (2 int); Bob Parsons, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
Rushing:
MIN: Rickey Young, 17 for 81 yards; Chuck Foreman, 17 for 73 yards and 1 TD; Robert Miller, 2 for 0 yards; Fran Tarkenton, 2 for -2 yards; Brent McClanahan, 1 for 1 yard CHI: Walter Payton, 24 for 58 yards and 2 TDs; Roland Harper, 10 for 31 yards; Bob Avellini, 2 for 1 yard
Receiving:
MIN: Sammy White, 6 for 82 yards and 1 TD; Rickey Young, 3 for 17 yards; Ahmad Rashad, 2 for 25 yards; Bob Tucker, 2 for 21 yards; Brent McClanahan, 1 for 7 yards CHI: Golden Richards, 6 for 76 yards; Roland Harper, 6 for 33 yards; Walter Payton, 4 for 37 yards; Greg Latta, 4 for 35 yards; James Scott, 2 for 26 yards
Kick returns:
MIN: Kevin Miller, 2 for 55 yards; Sammy White, 1 for 20 yards CHI: Mike Morgan, 3 for 63 yards; Len Walterscheid, 2 for 49 yards
Punt returns:
MIN: Kevin Miller, 2 for 7 yards CHI: Steve Schubert, 1 for 8 yards
Interceptions:
MIN: Bobby Bryant, 1 for 19 yards; Tom Hannon, 1 for 0 yards CHI: Doug Plank, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
MIN: Mike Wood, 2 for 80 yards CHI: Bob Parsons, 3 for 115 yards
Field Goals:
MIN: Rick Danmeier, 1/1 CHI: Bob Thomas, 2/2