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Vikings Get on Track, Beat Bears : Minnesota: Wade Wilson threws for two touchdowns in 27-16 victory.

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From Associated Press

As Wade Wilson and the Minnesota Vikings ended their offensive suffering, they may have also ended the Chicago Bears’ five-year reign as rulers of the NFC Central.

“It’s nice to dethrone them, as long as we’re the ones who replace them on the throne,” Wilson said. “It wouldn’t do us any good to beat the Bears and then watch the Packers win the division.”

Wilson threw two scoring passes and keyed the Vikings’ first long touchdown drive in three weeks in leading Minnesota to a 27-16 victory over the Bears Sunday night.

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“We went back to our old philosophy of throwing the ball deep,” said Wilson, who completed 15 of 26 passes for 260 yards. “We came out attacking them with our passing game, something we hadn’t done in a long time.”

The loss dropped Chicago (6-7) two games behind Minnesota and Green Bay. Both are 8-5.

The Bears are below .500 for the first time since the second-to-last week of 1983, the last season in which they missed the playoffs. The Bears, who have lost three straight and are 2-7 after a 4-0 start, last had a losing season in 1982, when they went 3-6 in Coach Mike Ditka’s first year.

As recently as last week, when Ditka said the Bears season was over because they “stink,” the coach has ridden his team hard.

He softened considerably after Sunday’s game.

“I just want to correct one thing,” he said. “I got on these guys a little last week. But, I’ll tell you, the way they played, good or bad, that’s my responsibility. They’re my guys and I love them and I respect them, and we’ll keep trying.

“I wanted it to happen more than anyone else in this room,” he said. “I don’t think this team will give up. They tried, they hung in there, they made some good things happen early.”

Chicago’s lone highlight came 3:28 into the game, when Kevin Butler broke an NFL record with his 24th consecutive field goal, a 33-yarder. His next attempt was blocked.

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The Vikings, who snapped a two-game losing streak, led 14-3 at halftime. They drove 66 yards in seven plays for one score, a one-yard run by Herschel Walker, and got their second touchdown on a 46-yard hookup, Wilson to Hassan Jones. It was the Vikings’ longest pass play of the season and capped a six-play, 73-yard drive.

The Vikings are shooting for their first division title since 1980.

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