Our Official Staff Prediction for Lions at Vikings
The VikingsTerritory collective staff prediction for Lions at Vikings is ready.
Minnesota lost in Week 15 at the Cincinnati Bengals, 27-24. The Vikings bungled a 17-3 lead in the 4th Quarter, only the second time the franchise has lost a lead in the final period since Blair Walsh’s infamous miss in the 2015 playoffs.
Our Official Staff Prediction for Lions at Vikings
The Lions are 2-2 in their last four games, toppling the New Orleans Saints and Denver Broncos in the last month while losing division games to the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears.
The writers at VikingsTerritory predict the Vikings will win their eighth game of the season.
Writers mostly chose the Vikings, evidently confident the club can right the ship following an embarrassing defensive meltdown at Cincinnati.
Here’s how the panel sees the score for Week 16:
Dustin Baker: Vikings Win, 30-20
Sean Borman: Lions Win, 28-24
Janik Eckardt: Vikings Win, 20-17
Josh Frey: Vikings Win, 34-21
Will Goodwin: Vikings Win, 27-23
Wes Johnson: Vikings Win, 31-27
Kyle Joudry: Vikings Win, 28-24
Adam New: Lions Win, 24-20
Nate Powalie: Lions Win, 27-26
Ted Schwerzler: Vikings Win, 24-21
Ali Siddiqui: Vikings Win, 31-23
Cole Smith: Vikings Win, 24-15
Mathematically en masse, we predict the Vikings will top the Lions by a score of 27-23.
And 2023 season standings for our writers’ predictions:
Dustin Baker: 9-5
Ted Schwerzler: 9-5
Cole Smith: 9-5
Sean Borman: 8-6
Janik Eckardt: 8-6
Adam New: 8-6
Nate Powalie: 8-6
Josh Frey: 7-7
Will Goodwin: 7-7
Wes Johnson: 7-7
Kyle Joudry: 6-8
Ali Siddiqui: 5-9
Last week, Dustin Baker, Janik Eckardt, and Ted Schwerzler most accurately predicted the Vikings’ outcome. They picked the Vikings to lose by three, and that happened.
The Lions are favored to prevail by 3.5 points against the Vikings, as oddsmakers believe Detroit is more talented and consistent than Minnesota. The Lions also aren’t missing their starting quarterback.
Sporting News picked the Lions to defeat the Vikings, and SN’s Bill Bender explained with a 27-20 prediction, “The Lions can clinch their first NFC North championship with a victory against the Vikings. It’s not about the home-and-road splits with Jared Goff. It’s about turnovers. Detroit is 8-1 in games with one turnover or less, and the Vikings have a -6 turnover margin and a third-string quarterback in Nick Mullens facing that Detroit pass rush.”
The Lions have lost five consecutive games at U.S. Bank Stadium.
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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