Posted on November 30, 2019, by Travis Pulver
Last season when the Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks met late in the season, both were gunning for a wild-card berth. But this season, both have bigger goals in mind for the regular season. They are both leading in the wild card hunt in the NFC right now, but they would much rather have their respective division crowns.
To that end, not only do they need their current division leaders to lose, but they can’t lose. With San Francisco playing Baltimore, the Seahawks could get the break they need. Minnesota isn’t as fortunate. The only tough game the Green Bay Packers have left is against the Vikings in Week 16.
So, a win Monday night is vital for both teams. But who is going to get it?
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Table of Contents
Minnesota Vikings News
After going through some early-season struggles, the Vikings appear to have their act together. Their primary issue is the same as every other team—injuries.
“Give your body a rest, give your mind a rest. I think it came at a good time,” linebacker Anthony Barr said, via ESPN. “Hopefully, we get some guys back healthy and be strong for this last five-game push we have.”
Right guard Josh Kline is no longer on the injury report. But wide receiver Adam Thielen still is, as is safeties Anthony Harris and Harrison Smith and defensive tackles Linval Joseph and Shamar Stephen. The Vikings will certainly need their defense at full strength to slow down Russell Wilson.
If Thielen can go, as expected, that will be one more weapon for Kirk Cousins and the offense.
Seattle Seahawks News
Injuries are not as significant a story with the Seahawks. They got Tyler Lockett back last week but hope that better conditions and a more pass friendly game will get him involved (unlike last week). There is a chance tight end Luke Wilson could return. But if not, Jacob Hollister has been filling in admirably.
However, the Seahawks do have one major injury concern—defensive end Jadeveon Clowney. He has been dealing with a core injury. While he is not expected to need surgery, at this time, he is listed as questionable on the team’s injury report.
He did miss the game last week against the Eagles because of the injury, so he may miss this week as well. But he was a limited participant in Friday’s practice.
Odds And Prediction
The oddsmakers at DraftKings have the spread at 2.5 points for the Seahawks. So, they are clearly expecting a close game – which is likely going to be exactly what fans get. The key for either team will be getting their run game on track.
Cousins and Wilson will both get their respective passing games on track. But the winner will be whoever can run the ball and keep the other’s offense off the field.
Minnesota has the best running back between the two teams in Dalvin Cook. But Cook has been held in check for the last four weeks. The last time he ran for 100+ yards was against the Detroit Lions (142). Last week he only ran for 26 yards, but the week before, he accounted for 183 total yards against the Cowboys.
But Seattle may actually have the edge in the running game with Chris Carson, Russell Wilson, and the sudden emergence of Rashaad Penny.
So—how should you bet?
It is going to be a very good, very close game. But in the end, the Seahawks (-148) will win by a field goal, 27-24 (so take the over; 50 points).