3 Bold Predictions Ahead of Vikings at Lions
Facing a daunting underdog spread of 9.5 points, the Minnesota Vikings hope to score their biggest upset in 15 years this Sunday at the Detroit Lions.
The Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions square off for the first time this year, and these are three bold predictions for the Ford Field showdown.
Minnesota is gradually healing, and starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy will return to his home college state this weekend for a gander at the Lions.
Hot Takes for Vikings Showdown in Detroit
Just the bold stuff for Week 9.
1. The Rushing Offense Clicks for the First Time Since Week 3
No Vikings running back has logged more than 57 rushing yards in a single game since Week 3. Another way to put it: a player hasn’t rushed for more than 60 yards in six weeks.
That is just bound to turn around, and this week, Jordan Mason will chip off about 75 rushing yards, with Aaron Jones getting in on the fun for 40 or so. Additionally, Minnesota will log at least two rushing touchdowns, which will feel like a breath of fresh air after the two recent losses to the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Chargers.
It’s time for Kevin O’Connell’s rushing offense to heal, and that process will begin at Ford Field.
2. J.J. McCarthy Doesn’t Look Anything Like His Trashy Week 2 Performance
In a very bizarre turn of events — no one has really explained it six weeks later — some believe that because McCarthy played terribly in Week 2 against the Atlanta Falcons, he is destined to play poorly all of the time. And that theory just doesn’t make sense. Young quarterbacks are allowed to struggle, and for some reason, many just decided that McCarthy was probably a bust after a single bad game. That was the week after he won the NFC Offensive Rookie of the Week award.
Well, McCarthy is not, in fact, eternally damned due to one lousy game. He will bounce back in Michigan, his NCAA Championship state, and look the part of a competent quarterback.
The 22-year-old may not deliver 300 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions, but he will do enough to erase the unfounded fears regarding his future trajectory. Players have bad outings, especially in their second career start.
The Athletic‘s Michael Silver noted on McCarthy this week, “It’s not McCarthy’s fault that he suffered a season-ending torn meniscus in his first preseason game as a rookie or that, in September, he sustained a high ankle sprain against the Falcons that lingered for a month and a half.”
“And he certainly can’t be castigated for missing an important practice three days before his second career start to be with his fiancée for the birth of their son, spending three nights at the hospital in the process. His small body of work — seven subpar quarters, and a tremendous 15-minute stretch against the Chicago Bears that propelled him to an NFC Offensive Player of the Week award — suggests that the former Michigan star is very much a work in progress.”
McCarthy’s main question, above all else, is long-term durability.
Silver added, “And because of bad luck, and O’Connell’s high standard of expectation at the position, McCarthy’s growth curve will now have to become much steeper. For now in Minnesota, it’s still J.J. or bust. Will that mindset soon be replaced by J.J.’s a bust? Not if McCarthy plays well enough to remind people why the Vikings traded up a spot to draft him.”
“Given O’Connell’s track record, there’s ample reason to believe this is possible. Last season, he won Coach of the Year honors while reaffirming his status as one of the sport’s elite quarterback whisperers, thanks to Darnold’s breakout performance.”
3. The Vikings End the Three-Year Losing Streak against the Lions
Everything is just poetic and weird enough for this damn thing to happen.
a) McCarthy returns to his college state, where he’s never lost a game.
b) The Vikings haven’t scored an upset as an eight-point underdog or more in 15 years. It’s time.
c) As a head coach, Kevin O’Connell’s back is against the wall. It’s time to see what he’s made of in the face of adversity.
d) Minnesota hasn’t beaten Detroit in three years.
e) The Vikings haven’t won at Ford Field in five years.
f) Nobody realistically thinks Minnesota will win.
This game is just the right amount of strange for Minnesota to waltz out as the winner.
Minnesota wins by three.
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