Vikings vs Lions Predictions, Picks, Week 7 Odds 10/20/2019

Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions play the Minnesota Vikings at Ford Field on Sunday, October 20, 2019. Minnesota opens this contest as 1-point underdogs. The O/U has been set at 44. The Vikings are 4-2-0 ATS and 2-4-0 when betting on the total. The Lions are 3-2-0 when wagering on the over/under and 2-2-1 against the spread.

In their last outing, the Minnesota Vikings played the Philadelphia Eagles and won 38-20. Alexander Mattison paced the team on the ground in the game. He tore off a long run of 35 yards but wasn't able to convert a rushing touchdown. He racked up a total of 63 yards via 14 carries which meant he was running for 4.5 yards per carry. Stefon Diggs led the team in receiving yardage by earning 167 yards on 7 receptions. He notched an average of 23.9 yards per catch in the game. Leading the way at QB for the Vikings was Kirk Cousins who went 22/29 with 333 yards passing and threw 4 touchdowns. He threw 1 pick in the game. The Minnesota Vikings rushed the ball a total of 35 times and generated 122 yards which had them averaging 3.5 yards per carry. Overall, the Vikings got 26 first downs and they had a total of 4 infractions for 30 yards. For the game, they ran 65 plays for 447 yards. When it comes to their defensive performance, Minnesota allowed 26 catches on 41 attempts totaling 292 yards, and a completion percentage of 63.0%. In the game, they conceded a total of 400 yards and earned 3 takeaways. On the ground, the Vikings allowed 108 yards on 22 attempts which is an average of 4.9 yards per run allowed. Another game you may want to bet on is the pick from Josh Schonwald on the Dolphins vs Bills contest.

Vikings Better their mark to 4-2 After Win

The Vikings head into this matchup 4-2 for this year. This team is one of the more average teams in terms of scoring in the NFC North and I wouldn't expect it to change too much in this matchup. For total yards, they are currently ranked 5th in the conference and 9th in the league with 2,234 yards. When it comes to scoring touchdowns, the Vikings currently have a total of 9 passing touchdowns and 9 rushing TDs. In terms of scoring, they are one of the marginal teams in the league with an average of 25 points per game, ranking them 12th in the league. As a team, they are averaging 159 yards on the ground per contest which is 1st in the conference.

The Vikings have one of the top tier defenses in the league, giving up 15.5 points per contest which has them at 3rd in the conference. When it comes to yards through the air, the Vikings have allowed 1,313 yards. Teams are completing 67.7% of the passes they throw against them and averaging 5.4 yards per attempt. They have allowed 10 passing touchdowns and 1 rushing touchdown. When talking about rushing yards, Minnesota is allowing 91.5 yards per contest putting them 2nd among NFC North teams and 9th in the league. They are allowing teams to run for an average of 3.8 yards per rush which has them at 5th among NFC teams and 8th in the league overall. In total, they have allowed 954 rushing yards through 6 games.

In their last game, the Detroit Lions went up against the Green Bay Packers and took the loss by a score of 23-22. Kerryon Johnson paced the team in rushing for the game. His longest run of the day went for 8 yards and he tallied 1 touchdown for the contest. He rushed for a total of 34 yards by way of 13 carries which meant he averaged 2.6 yards per run. Kenny Golladay led the team in receiving yardage by racking up 121 yards on 5 catches. He had an average of 24.2 yards per catch for the game. Running the show from under center for the Lions was Matthew Stafford who went 18/32 with 265 yards passing but didn't get a passing TD in the game. He walked away from this game with no interceptions. Take a look where the Lions are ranked in Doc's Week 7 NFL power rankings. The Detroit Lions ran the ball a total of 20 times and totaled 56 yards which earned them an average of 2.8 yards per run. For the contest, the Lions racked up a total of 13 1st downs and they had a total of 8 penalties for 50 yards. On the day, they ran 55 plays for a total of 299 yards. In terms of defense, Detroit allowed 24 completions on 39 attempts totaling 277 yards, and a completion percentage of 62.0%. In the running game, the Lions allowed 170 yards on 29 attempts which gave them an average of 5.9 yards per run allowed. On the day, they conceded 447 yards and forced 3 turnovers.

Lions are Now 2-2-1 After Loss

The Lions step onto the field holding a record of 2-2-1. Detroit needs to do more to make teams respect their running game by averaging 108 rushing yards per game, putting them 16th in the league. As a team, they have a total of 538 yards rushing through 5 games, so they are going to want to make some changes to the ground game if they want to make teams respect them. The Lions average 370 yards per game overall putting them 13th among NFL teams and 8th among NFC teams. When looking at their ability to score points, the Lions are currently ranked 2nd in the NFC North and 13th out of all the teams in the league with an average of 23.8 points per game.

The Lions are conceding 23.6 points per contest which puts them at 4th in the NFC North and 18th in the league. When it comes to points allowed, they have allowed 118 points in total. In discussing yards rushing, they are conceding 134 yards per game ranking them 27th in the league and 4th in the NFC North. For this season, they have given up 669 yards on the ground and 5 rushing TDs. Their pass defense is one of the middle of the road groups in the NFL. They are giving up 280 passing yards per game. For passing yards allowed per game, the Lions are currently ranked 12th among NFC teams. They have conceded 6 passing touchdowns for the 2019 season.

Who will win tonight's Vikings/Lions NFL game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Lions -1

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