NFL Experts Not High on Vikings This Weekend
Dustin Baker
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Think the Minnesota Vikings will nudge their winning streak to five games this weekend?
You’re in the minority if so.
NFL Experts Not High on Vikings This Weekend
Minnesota hosts the New Orleans Saints, a hated foe with rivalry history dating back 14 years to the 2009 NFC Championship. That season, the Saints used a bounty program to hunt then-Vikings quarterback Brett Favre, which resulted in suspensions, and Vikings fans have loathed the Saints since.
And while this brand of Vikings has won four consecutive games — yes, the club began winning the moment Justin Jefferson was injured; it doesn’t make sense — NFL pundits are not high on Minnesota heading into Week 10.
According to NFL Pick Watch, a website that tracks and stores all experts’ picks, 60% of the NFL who’s who believe the Saints will prevail in Minneapolis on Sunday. The Vikings will trot out journeyman passer and new QB1 Josh Dobbs versus New Orleans, while the Saints have Derek Carr at the helm. Per the talking heads, the Saints will have enough oomph to end the Vikings run.
Sporting News is one example favoring New Orleans. Picking the Saints to triumph 28-25, the same score the Vikings produced to beat the Saints in London last year, SN chose Dennis Allen’s team and explained, “This is a battle of 5-4 teams in the NFC playoff hunt. The Vikings are 1-3 S/U at home, which is surprising considering their reputation there. Dobbs led the comeback against the Falcons. Can he do it against another NFC South team? The Saints have not beat a team that currently has a winning record, but they are 3-2 S/U on the road. The Vikings won 28-25 last season. This time, the Saints return the favor.”
Both teams have 5-4 records heading into Week 10.
New Orleans has a mind-bogglingly easy schedule this season, before and after the Vikings tryst, so the NFC North foe will actually use this weekend as a healthy barometer of its 2023 standing. Generally speaking, the Saints are efficient on defense but average on offense.
Another outfit, CBS Sports, picked the Saints to defeat the Vikings by a score of 24-17.
Interestingly, though, Vikings fans are quite optimistic about Week 10. Several weeks ago, facing a 1-4 record and a Justin Jefferson injured reserve trip, Vikings loyalists were rather low on the rest-of-season outlook, with some fans even calling for the franchise to “tank” for a sexy draft pick. Minnesota responded by winning four straight and would choose 20th if the 2024 NFL Draft happened today.
The Saints are 2-4 (.333) against the Vikings since the start of 2017.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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