It will be a battle between two of the NFL’s most disappointing teams this Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium when the Minnesota Vikings play host to the Washington Commanders. Given the way that the early betting lines have flip-flopped, it’s hard to say who the sharps view as the bigger disappointment.
When the folks from the FanDuel Sportsbook opened the betting lines for this one on Monday morning, they had the Commanders listed as a 1.5-point favorite (as our friends over at Hogs Haven documented). Just 24 hours later, however, that line has been reversed, as they are now showing the Vikings as a 1.5-point favorite. I’m not sure what happened in the past 24 hours to make the line move that much, but apparently something did.
The Vikings, as we all know, are currently riding a four-game losing streak, and are coming off one of the worst offensive performances in team history, as they were shut out for the first time in eighteen years in their 26-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks this past Sunday. It sounds like quarterback J.J. McCarthy has cleared concussion protocol and will be back in the proverbial saddle for the Vikings this Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium. With their record sitting at 4-8, the competitive part of the season is over for the Vikings, less than twelve months after they were competing for the top seed in the conference and had potential Super Bowl aspirations.
The Commanders, who advanced to the NFC Championship Game last season, have hit hard times this season as well. They come into this game with a record of 3-9 and have lost their last seven games. Their last two losses have come in overtime, including a 27-26 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football this past week, where they went for the win with a two-point conversion play after answering Denver’s touchdown drive in OT only to see Marcus Mariota’s pass get knocked down to go down in defeat.
The Commanders have been without star quarterback Jayden Daniels, who won the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award last season, since he suffered a nasty-looking elbow injury in Week 9. There hasn’t been any word yet on whether or not Daniels will be back for this one or not. If he is, I would fully expect this line to shift back towards Washington’s favor again.
Kickoff for this one is slated for noon Central time in Minneapolis, with the game being broadcast on the FOX family of networks.
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