Getty Oakland Raiders QB Derek Carr.
Both teams look to bounce back from humbling losses in Week 2 as the Oakland Raiders visit the Minnesota Vikings in Week 3.
The Raiders and the Vikings each emerged victorious in Week 1. However, Oakland was absolutely dominated in a 28-10 thrashing at the hands of their divisional rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs, in Week 2. As far as the Vikings are concerned, they suffered a 21-16 loss to the Green Bay Packers— but the margin of defeat doesn’t pain the entire picture. Minnesota fell behind 21-0 before making late push.
However, that push came up short when Kirk Cousins threw an underthrown pass that was intercepted by Packers defensive back Kevin King late in the fourth quarter. Minnesota had been threatening to take the lead on first-and-goal from the 8-yard-line.
As both of these teams look to get back on the winning track, who has the upper hand when it comes to the spread?
Oakland Raiders (1-1) at Minnesota Vikings (1-1)
Sunday, September 22 at 1:00 PM ET
U.S. Bank Stadium
Coverage: FOX
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Jazz Sports
- Raiders vs. Vikings -9
- Over/Under: 43.5
Oakland Raiders
Busting loose!
@IAM_JoshJacobs shows off the wheels for 50+.
The Raiders looked like a world-class team when they defeated the Denver Broncos in Week. Derek Carr completed 84.6 percent of his passes for 259 yards and a touchdown with zero interceptions in the wire-to-wire victory over the Broncos. However, he came back down to earth when he faced a competent team in the Chiefs.
Carr threw just 178 yards with one touchdown against two interceptions for a 61.1 quarterback rating. Heck, he led the Raiders to just 10 points as they averaged just 4.3 yards per pass attempt and 5.1 yards per play on the day.
Luckily for Oakland, they face an equally flawed opponent this time around in Minnesota. And while they’ll have starting left guard Richie Incognito back in the lineup after a two-game suspension, they’ll likely be missing right tackle Trent Brown (knee) and possibly even starting running back Josh Jacobs (foot). Both are listed as questionable in the Week 3 injury report.
Minnesota Vikings
The Vkings cruised to a Week 1 win when they defeated the Atlanta Falcons 28-12. However, that win was entirely due to the defense and Matt Ryan‘s horrific effort. Kirk Cousins literally wasn’t forced to throw the ball in that game, throwing just 10 passes for 98 yards. In other words, Minnesota didn’t want to expose their extremely-flawed quarterback.
However, Minnesota was forced to throw the ball in Week 2 when they fell behind 21-0 against the Packers. And well, while Cousins led a nice comeback, he came up short in the end with this interception in the end zone.
One thing is for certain — the Vikings need Cousins to play like a starting quarterback if they are to defeat the Raiders — even at home.
If there’s been a positive to the Vikings’ start to the season, it’s that Dalvin Cook leads the NFL in rushing yards (265 yards on 6.5 yards per carry) through the first two games of the season.
Trends and Prediction
Raiders Trends:
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Oakland’s last 6 games.
- Oakland are 5-15 SU in their last 20 games.
- Oakland are 1-10 SU in their last 11 games on the road.
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Oakland’s last 8 games against an opponent in the NFC conference.
- Oakland are 0-6 SU in their last 6 games against an opponent in the NFC North division.
Vikings Trends:
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Minnesota’s last 8 games.
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota’s last 6 games at home.
- Minnesota are 15-4 ATS in their last 19 games against an opponent in the AFC conference.
- Minnesota are 7-1 SU in their last 8 games when playing as the favourite.
As you can see by the above trends, both teams tend to go under on the over/under while the Raiders have been horrific when it pertains to straight-up play over the past two seasons.
Both of these teams are mediocre squads that have uneven quarterback play, but are strong in the run game. However, the Vikings have the stronger overall team — their defense ranks No. 6 in points allowed and No. 9 in yards per attempt through the first two weeks of the season.
When you factor in that their star players are less banged up and that Oakland is essentially playing at 11 AM on their time zone, this doesn’t bode well for the Raiders.
Expect the Vikings to cover — but it won’t be the blowout you’re expecting. Also make sure to bet on the under.
Pick: Vikings (-9), Under (43.5)