10 Players to Watch: Bears at Vikings in Week 17

In their own words, here are five Bears and five Vikings to watch in Week 17.

BEARS

QB Jay Cutler

“You want to win just to feel good going into the offseason. … I don’t know how [general manager] Phil [Emery] or ownership feel about the guys on this team and what happens if we drop this game.”

QB David Fales

“[He’s] in a learning process — learning how to prepare and study and get ready for a game.” – coach Marc Trestman

RB Matt Forte

“Any time you’re a running back and there’s a game where you didn’t have a lot of carries or you felt like you needed more carries and you could have affected the game, it’s not so much frustrated but disappointed.”

DE Jared Allen

“It’s always exciting to go back and play against the team you came from. [But] it’s not playing in the dome, so it’s not like there’s memories there.”

LB Christian Jones

“He’s a football guy. He loves to play the game. It means a lot to him. But in order to learn how to play the position, you have to play.” – defensive coordinator Mel Tucker

VIKINGS

QB Teddy Bridgewater

“You don’t want to head into the offseason with a loss. You want to head into the offseason with some momentum; we know how important it is.”

WR Greg Jennings

“Greg has always talked to me about just feeling it and trying to see it. It was one of those deals where I just had to throw and trust that he was going to be in the right place.” — Bridgewater (Star Tribune)

WR/KR Cordarrelle Patterson

“We’ve always got to be aware of what’s going on in special teams with Cordarelle Patterson. Anytime he’s out there, he’s a threat to go the distance.” — Trestman

DE Everson Griffen

“Throughout my career, there’s always been several guys who I thought should have made [the Pro Bowl] and didn’t, and that’s just the way it is.” – Vikings coach Mike Zimmer

FS Harrison Smith

“It doesn’t really matter. That’s not the point of the season anyways. I’d rather be playing in a playoff game than worrying about [not making the Pro Bowl].”