The 0-0 Minnesota Vikings host the 0-0 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Minnesota Vikings have a point spread of -5½ with a money line of -110. The over/under total on the game is currently set at 45 points.
&The Minnesota Vikings are coached by Kevin O’Connell who had been with the team since 2022. They have a current season record of 0-0 after going 13-4 last season. All coaches want big games from their defense and Kevin O’Connell is no different.
The Minnesota Vikings are coached by Kevin O’Connell who had been with the team since 2022. They have a current season record of 0-0 after going 13-4 last season. All coaches want big games from their defense and Kevin O’Connell is no different.
Kirk Cousins is the quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. The 34-year-old Michigan State alum entered the league in 2012 and is looking for a win in front of the home crowd here. Last season he had started 17 games and throw for 4547 yards with a completion percentage of 65.9 percent. Kirk Cousins had thrown 29 touchdowns against 14 interceptions and had a QB Rating of 92.5.
His main target will be Justin Jefferson. The home crowd would love to see some fireworks from the 23-year-old target. He had made 128 receptions to date on 184 targets, a catch percentage of 0.696, for a total of 1809 yards. Justin Jefferson is averaged 14.1 yards per catch with 8 touchdowns thus far. Kirk Cousins will be looking to connect with him for more here.
The Minnesota Vikings running game is lead by the 24-year-old Alexander Mattison. A big game from him could be the key to controlling the clock here. He’s taken 74 carries and rushed for 283 yards Last season. His yards per game currently sits at 16.6 yards per game, a number that you know Kevin O’Connell would love to see him exceed in this game. Alexander Mattison had 5 touchdowns last season and 0 fumbles.
Their kicker is Greg Joseph who had made 26 of 33 field goals last season, a 0.788 field goal percentage, with a long of 61 yards. The Minnesota Vikings fans don’t want to see him too much, but it’s good to know he can hit one if needed.
Overall, the Minnesota Vikings offense ranks 16 out of 32 teams in Offense DVOA at 0.011, per FootballOutsiders. last season they have a Red Zone success rate of 0.625 with 40 Red Zone touchdowns in 64 attempts.
On the defensive end, the Minnesota Vikings have a Defense DVOA of 0.106, ranking 32 in the league.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are on the road for this one. Todd Bowles’s squad is 0-0 this season after going 8-9 last year. He had been at the helm since 2022 and is looking to grab a road win here. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a betting line of -5½ or you could bet them straight up at -110.
27-year-old Baker Mayfield will be under center for this one. He entered the league in 2018 after playing his college days at Oklahoma. Baker Mayfield had a quarterback rating of 79 on 10 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. He’s started 10 games and thrown for 2163, a completion percentage of 60.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will look to get the running game going in this match-up and to do that they’ll need a big game from Rachaad White. The 23-year-old back had rushed for 1 touchdowns Last season and he’ll look to take it to the house again against the Minnesota Vikings. He’s taken the hand-off 129 times and added 481 yards for the offense. Rachaad White is averaged 28.3 yards per game for the season and had lost the ball 3 times. A turnover on the road could be seen as unacceptable for Todd Bowles so he’ll need to protect the ball here.
On the passing front, Baker Mayfield will look to target Chris Godwin against the Todd Bowles defense. Chris Godwin had 3 touchdowns Last season and his team will be looking for more here. On the year, he’s been targeted 142 times and made 104 catches for 1023 yards. Chris Godwin had a catch percentage of 0.732 and his yards per reception is 9.8.
The team will be looking for touchdowns, but they have Ryan Succop to knock down field goals if needed. His season long is a 54 yarder which is always helpful on the road. Ryan Succop had made 31 field goals on 54 attempts, a field goal percentage of 0.816.
According to FootballOutsiders, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense had a Defense-adjusted Value Over Average of -0.072 which ranks at number 28 out of thirty two teams. If they hope to win on the road, they’ll need to do well in the Red Zone. For the year, they have scored 26 Red Zone touchdowns on 50 attempts, a Red Zone percentage of 0.52.
Key Match-ups:
- Kirk Cousins QB Rating of 92.5 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Passing YPG of 208.8
Tampa Bay Buccaneers have 10 interceptions this year and 45 sacks. They are allowing 21.0588235294118 points per game. - Alexander Mattison vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers number 20 ranked DVOA Defense
Opponents are averaged 4.5 yards per carry against Tampa Bay Buccaneers and 120.705882352941 per game. - Baker Mayfield QB Rating of 79 vs. Minnesota Vikings Pass Defense
- The Minnesota Vikings defense had allowed 25.1176470588235 points per game Last season. They have sacked the quarterback 38 times and picked him off 15 times.
- Rachaad White vs. Minnesota Vikings Defense
Minnesota Vikings is giving up 123.117647058824 yards per game on 4.5 per carry Last season.