As he trotted off the Metrodome field -- his Vikings a 12-10 victor -- Childress was showered with chants for his ouster.

Now, heading into a game against the still-winless Lions at Ford Field, Childress' popularity may be at an all-time high.

The Vikings are in sole possession of first place in the NFC North after an impressive 34-14 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday night. Just as important, all three of their phases outplayed their counterparts.

The perfect game it was not.

The offense punted on its first four possessions; one of the defense's top players, cornerback Antoine Winfield, was beaten for a 65-yard touchdown midway through the first quarter, and the special teams gave up a 43-yard kickoff return early in the second quarter.

But all three units dominated the final 35 minutes of the game, as the Vikings outscored the Bears 31-7.

"It was a great team win," defensive end Jared Allen said Sunday night.

Here is a closer look at what has changed for the Vikings since their Oct. 12 squeaker against the Lions.

SPECIAL TEAMS

The problem: The unit gave up five touchdowns in the first seven games, including two in a 48-41 loss at Soldier Field. There was another letdown with a 65-yard touchdown on a punt return against the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 9.

What has changed: The Vikings' coverage units have dramatically improved their play the past three games. Opponents are averaging just 24.4 yards per kickoff, with a long of 43 coming Sunday night against the Bears.

The Vikings have been even stingier on punt returns, with the bulk of the yardage coming on a 38-yarder by Brian Witherspoon of Jacksonville. Kicker Ryan Longwell continues to be steady, punter Chris Kluwe has been solid and the Vikings finally got a spark on kickoffs with rookie Darius Reynaud, who had a season-long return of 43 yards against the Bears.

A few players are emerging on the coverage units, namely safeties Eric Frampton and Husain Abdullah. Cornerback Cedric Griffin forced a key turnover in Jacksonville to help the Vikings jump out to a 14-0 lead.

"I think it's just a matter of continuity and having the same people doing the same things, and guys playing off of each other," Childress said. "Somebody gets knocked out of their lane, and somebody is taking over that line."

DEFENSE

The problem: On paper, the Vikings had one of their better defensive performances against the Lions, limiting Detroit to 10 points and 212 net yards, the third-fewest of the season.

But the Lions (30th in the NFL) are bad, and the Vikings can't feel good about giving up a 50-yard run to Kevin Smith -- the longest by the Lions this season -- and allowing Dan Orlovsky to complete 12 of 21 passes for 150 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions in his first NFL start.

Things got worse the following week when the Vikings gave up three pass plays of 20 or more yards in the third quarter of their loss to the Bears.

What has changed: The Vikings are more aggressive, which has helped them pile up more takeaways. After getting six interceptions in the first 10 games, the Vikings have five in the past two games, as their defensive line pressured Jaguars quarterback David Garrard and Bears quarterback Kyle Orton.

In the first nine games, the Vikings forced 22 fumbles but recovered just eight. Over the past three games, they have recovered four of seven.

Cornerback Antoine Winfield provided a quick answer when asked what has changed about the defense since the debacle in Chicago.

"Being more aggressive," he said, noting that the Vikings played a lot more zone, dropped into coverage and allowed Orton to get rid of the ball.

Over the past two games, the Vikings have been playing more man to man, allowing their physical cornerbacks to beat up on opposing receivers and, consequently, buying more time for their pass rushers to get to the quarterback.

"That's the way we want it, especially on the back end," Winfield said of the aggressive approach. "We want to play more man, and we've been doing that and having some success."

OFFENSE

The problem: The Vikings had no trouble moving the ball against one of the league's worst defenses. They just had a hard time holding onto it. Minnesota fumbled four times, two of which the Lions recovered in their own territory.

Adrian Peterson topped 100 yards rushing, but his longest jaunt was 13 yards. In addition, quarterback Gus Frerotte was sacked five times by a defense that had four sacks in four games. The Vikings were on the fortunate end of two questionable calls, and they stole the game from the Lions with a 26-yard field goal with nine seconds remaining.

What has changed: The Vikings are actually scoring touchdowns now. After scoring just eight touchdowns in the first six games, the Vikings have scored 19 in the past six.

The only exception was in Tampa, where they managed a season-low 210 net yards. But just as they did in their earlier meeting against the Bears, the Vikings on Sunday showcased their versatility and explosiveness. Nine players caught Frerotte's 16 completions, and Peterson and backup Chester Taylor averaged a healthy 4.6 yards per carry.

Perhaps most important, despite a surprising number of sacks, the Vikings offensive line has played better since the last game against the Lions.

"I think we're playing better," left tackle Bryant McKinnie said, "but we can do better."

Aside from the obvious production and attention that Peterson draws, the Vikings' offense has benefited from the play of tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. He has had a catch of at least 20 yards in five of the past six games. In fact, Shiancoe deserves an assist on Bernard Berrian's 99-yard touchdown because cornerback Charles Tillman hesitated thinking Frerotte was going to throw the ball to Shiancoe.