Minnesota’s Offense Wins the Day vs Lions

The Sportsbook of Sunday’s showdown between Detroit and host Minnesota might not be an NFC North title contender, but the losing team will certainly find the road to the postseason a whole lot bumpier. The Lions (3-4 SU, 3-4 ATS) were thumped 41-21 by the Colts last week and are slight underdogs against a Minnesota team (2-5 SU, 4-3 ATS) coming off a big win over Green Bay.

Detroit Lions vs Minnesota Vikings

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

Minnesota remains the betting favorite, but the line has flipped sides on the magic number of -3; the Vikings opened at -2 but are now at -4. The total has dipped from 55.5 down to either 53 or 53.5 depending on where you wager.

Detroit News & Notes

Not only did the Lions look thoroughly outmatched at home against Indianapolis in Week 8, they also lost their No. 1 receiving threat. Kenny Golladay suffered a hip injury in the defeat and will miss Week 9, putting the bulk of the receiving burden on the inconsistent Marvin Jones Jr. and the impressive T.J. Hockenson; we like Hockenson as a daily fantasy tight end play.

The Detroit rush attack is also a major question mark going into Sunday’s encounter with the Vikings. While the Lions average four yards per carry for the season, they had just 29 yards on 13 carries against the Colts and have seen both Adrian Peterson and D’Andre Swift struggle. Neither is a good DFS option, while the UNDER on their rushing yard props is the superior play.

Minnesota News & Notes

Daily fantasy players and prop bettors who put their faith in Dalvin Cook were handsomely rewarded last week, as the returning running back exploded for 226 total yards and four touchdowns in a 28-22 triumph over the division-leading Packers. Cook averaged 102 rushing yards in two meetings with Detroit last season, reaching the end zone three times.

The Vikings should also be optimistic that their passing game can get untracked after it produced just 154 yards against Green Bay (though in fairness, when the running game clicks like it did, who needs a quarterback?). The Lions rank near the middle of the pack in passing yards allowed (248.4) but have allowed a 14-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio with just 10 sacks through seven games.

Betting Pick: Vikings -4 (-110)

Minnesota’s secondary is a concern, but the Lions will be without their No. 1 receiving option – and given how Detroit’s defense has struggled this season, the Vikings should have little trouble putting up enough points to cover here.