Vikings Patriots Point Spread
NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis. The Patriots haven’t hit the over in their last seven games, although they are 10-2 ATS in their last 12 home games against teams with losing records. Archived Futures Odds; Live Super Bowl Odds; Live Game Odds; NBA. Archived Futures Odds; Live NBA Finals Odds. NFL Playoff Point Spreads from the Super Bowl Era Super Bowl Point Spreads. New England Patriots (2)-3.5: Los Angeles Chargers (5) 47.5: New England Patriots.
This week should start to fully weed out the riff-raff. Most of the team’s barely hanging on can either be eliminated by losing games themselves or having teams above them win.
So next week perceived motivation is going to play as much role in picking as the quality of matchup.
There’s still plenty of motivation in the MassLive’s Pro Football Pick ‘Em Challenge presented by Verilife. Here’s how we’ve done so far this season (minus the tie):
Ed Kubosiak, MassLive VP of Content: 141-66
Chris Mason, MassLive Patriots beat writer: 137-70
Matt Vautour, MassLive Sports Columnist: 135-72
Jim Pignatiello, MassLive Sports Director: 134-73
Nick O’Malley, MassLive Senior Sports Producer: 113-94
Here are this week’s picks:
Thursday, Dec. 17
L.A. Chargers (+3.5) at Las Vegas, 8:20 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: Vegas is fading from playoff contention and can’t afford to give away a game vs. a lousy Chargers team. - Raiders
Kubosiak: Chargers
Mason: Raiders
Pignatiello: Raiders
O’Malley: Chargers
Saturday, Dec. 19
Buffalo (-6.5) at Denver, 4:30 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: In this year of tortured franchises on the rise, the Bills might be best positioned to win a Super Bowl. - Bills
Kubosiak: Bills
Mason: Bills
Pignatiello: Bills
O’Malley: Bills
Carolina (+8.5) at Green Bay, 8:15 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: It’s supposed to be around 24 degrees with possibly some snow at game time. The Packers are going to play with their sights set on a No. 1 seed and a path to the Super Bowl. The Panthers are just going to be eager to put the game, and perhaps the season, behind them - Packers
Kubosiak: Packers
Mason: Packers
Pignatiello: Packers
Minnesota Vikings Point Spread
O’Malley: Packers
Sunday, Dec. 20
Chicago (-3.0) at Minnesota, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: The Patriots are wishing they were in the NFC. Chicago and Minnesota are both mediocre and still just a game out of the wild card at 6-7. - Vikings
Kubosiak: Vikings
Mason: Vikings
Pignatiello: Vikings
O’Malley: Vikings
Detroit (NO LINE) at Tennessee, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: The Titans aren’t good enough to win the AFC, but on one January weekend they might be good enough to beat a team that is good enough to win the AFC. They’re certainly good enough to beat the Lions. - Titans
Kubosiak: Titans
Mason: Titans
Pignatiello: Titans
O’Malley: Titans
Houston (+7.0) at Indianapolis, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: The Colts aren’t getting enough credit for recognizing that Philip Rivers still had something left in the tank.- Colts
Kubosiak: Colts
Mason: Colts
Pignatiello: Colts
O’Malley: Colts
Jacksonville (+13.5) at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: After all the craziness Monday night, it could be a challenge for the Ravens to bounce back emotionally. Good thing for them they’re playing the Jaguars this week. - Ravens
Kubosiak: Ravens
Mason: Ravens
Pignatiello: Ravens
O’Malley: Ravens
New England (-2.5) at Miami, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: Rookie quarterbacks usually struggle against Bill Belichick, but this feels like the week the Patriots are officially out of the postseason. - Dolphins
Kubosiak: Dolphins
Mason: Dolphins
Pignatiello: Dolphins
O’Malley: Patriots
San Francisco (-3.0) at Dallas, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: In the late 1980 1/4 u2032s and early 1990 1/4 u2032s this was the preview of NFC Championship games. In 2020 it’s the We’d-like-to-believe-we’d-be-better-if-our-QB-wasn’t-broken bowl -Cowboys
Kubosiak: 49ers
Mason: Cowboys
Pignatiello: 49ers
O’Malley: 49ers
Seattle (-6.0) at Washington, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: The Seahawks are sneaky vulnerable and the Washingtons are sneaky decent.- Washington
Kubosiak: Seahawks
Mason: Seahawks
Pignatiello: Seahawks
O’Malley: Seahawks
Tampa Bay (-6.0) at Atlanta, 1 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: Is there any lead that Falcons fans would be comfortable with against Tom Brady? - Buccaneers
Kubosiak: Buccaneers
Mason: Buccaneers
Pignatiello: Buccaneers
O’Malley: Buccaneers
N.Y. Jets (+17.0) at L.A. Rams, 4:05 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: The game offers no threat to the Jets’ quest for winless immortality - Rams
Kubosiak: Rams
Mason: Rams
Pignatiello: Rams
O’Malley: Rams
Philadelphia (+6.5) at Arizona, 4:05 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: Is Jalen Hurts magic real? Oklahoma fans should enjoy this matchup for their former quarterbacks - Cardinals
Kubosiak: Cardinals
Mason: Cardinals
Pignatiello: Cardinals
O’Malley: Cardinals
Kansas City (-3.0) at New Orleans, 4:25 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: On paper, this matchup between AFC No. 1 and NFC No. 2 could be a Super Bowl preview. In reality, it’s still a little hard to see Taysom Hill leading the Saints on a deep postseason run just yet. - Chiefs
Kubosiak: Chiefs
Mason: Chiefs
Pignatiello: Chiefs
O’Malley: Saints
Cleveland (-4.0) at N.Y. Giants, 8:20 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: The Browns are a team that nobody wants to face in the playoffs. How strange is that to say? - Browns
Kubosiak: Browns
Mason: Browns
Packers Vikings Point Spread
Pignatiello: Browns
O’Malley: Browns
Monday, Dec. 21
Pittsburgh (-11.5) at Cincinnati, 8:15 p.m.
Matt’s Pick: If you’re not a little nervous about the Steelers, you should be. Not nervous enough to lost to the Bengals though - Steelers
Kubosiak: Steelers
Mason: Steelers
Pignatiello: Steelers
O’Malley: Steelers
Games of this magnitude are why the Vikings signed quarterback Kirk Cousins to a 3-year $84 million dollar contract. With the team currently scrapping for a Wild Card spot in the playoffs, a road game against the Brady Bunch will certainly test the fortitude of their expensive quarterback.
Cousins has been on target, completing a 3rd ranked 71.1% of his passes, but it has not resulted in the high-flying offense Viking fans anticipated. The Purple and Gold are in the middle of the pack ranking 16th with 24.1 points per game.
But with an ailing Tom Brady at the helm for New England, NFL odds-makers are not giving the Pats so much as a touchdown margin in the point spread.
Who: Minnesota Vikings at New England Patriots
When: Sunday, December 2nd 4:25 PM EST
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA
Lines: Minnesota (+5) vs New England (-5) / O/U Total: (48.5)
Patriots vs Vikings: Week 13 NFL Odds and Preview
The disappearance of the running game has done Cousins no favors, as leading rusher Latavius Murray has 455 yards on the year. Mr. Reliable Adam Thielen, is having a Pro Bowl year and looks to have a field day against the shaky secondary of the Patriots.
Thielen leads the league with 93 receptions and is 2nd with 1,138 yards.
The Viking defense will take the fight directly to Brady as they rank 5th in the league, allowing just 221 passing yards per game and tied for 3rd out of 32 teams with 36 sacks on the year.
Is New England vulnerable to the upset at home? The Patriots have not displayed the same level of dominance this season that NFL fans are accustomed to in the Brady-Belichick era. Yet in spite of all, Patriots are within perfect striking distance of precious home-field advantage yet again.
Brady might be having a statistical off-year with only 19 touchdowns on the season, but the veteran always seems to have his squad in position to win games. The future Hall of Fame QB will gain extra help in the backfield in time for the showdown with the Vikings, as Rex Burkhead has been activated off injured reserve from his Week 3 neck injury.
The signal-caller is still a master of utilizing his running backs in the passing game, and running back James White leads the team with 67 catches for 567 yards and 6 touchdowns.
On the defensive side, the Patriots’ secondary will have to step up its game as they face the deadly Thielen-Diggs duo of the Vikings. The Patriots are 25th in the league in pass defense, allowing 270 passing yards per game.
Is Brady finally healthy heading into the matchup with the Vikings? CBS Boston has more:
At this point in the season, no one is really healthy in the NFL. That includes Tom Brady, who went in great depth about his health during his Monday evening interview with Westwood One’s Jim Gray. Brady was on New England’s injury report last week, limited by a knee issue on both Wednesday and Thursday. He was then absent from Friday’s practice with the knee and an illness, listed as questionable for the team’s Week 12 matchup with the New York Jets. He was under center on Sunday but the Pats QB did appear to be off at times during New England’s 27-13 victory. He still finished the game 20-for-31 for 283 yards, two touchdowns, no picks, and his 115.4 rating was the best he’s had all season. Brady says he’s kicked the flu that has been making its way through the New England locker room, and his balky knee is feeling better as the Patriots prepare for their Week 13 clash with the Vikings.
“I’m certainly doing better this week,” said Brady. “We had the game against Tennessee where I got a little nicked up and then had the bye week and was hoping to have a full week of practice, and it just didn’t allow for it. I think a lot of NFL players are nursing things at this point. I’m nursing a couple of little things. I’m feeling a lot better. A little flu has been going around, but I’m feeling a lot better and hopefully I really turned the corner with my knee this week.” Brady has never let minor injuries keep him from taking the playing field on Sundays, and it’s not something he’s going to let that start now. He believes the knee will get better even if he does play the final five games of the regular season.
An aging QB must pick his spots to open up an offense. While the old pro is doing a fine job of protecting his body, the conservative tactics may be holding the Pats back from covering more often.
Vikings Patriots Point Spread Week 2
Vikings at Patriots Betting ATS – My Prediction and Pick
If the Patriots are going to suffer a truly bad match-up at home at any point this season, this is probably the week. I’m liking the Vikes to pass the ball well enough in the 1st half to set up a ball-control offense in the 2nd half, as the Patriots are not leaps and bounds better vs the run than they are against the pass.
Take the Vikings as this week’s upset-special pick, on the moneyline or to cover (+5).