Riding a four-game winning streak, including road victories in three consecutive weeks for the first time in franchise history, the Minnesota Vikings return to U.S. Bank Stadium to kick off a three-game homestand when they host the Arizona Cardinals in Week 13 NFL action.

The Vikings escaped from Soldier Field. . .despite their own best efforts, at times. . .with a 30-27 overtime victory over the Chicago Bears to push their record to 9-2 on the season and keep pace with Detroit in the NFC North. They currently occupy the top Wild Card spot in the NFC but are in a position to pounce if the Lions should stumble.

After a couple of rough games, quarterback Sam Darnold has put things back together quite nicely over the past couple of weeks. Over the past two weeks, Darnold has accounted for five touchdowns (four passing, one rushing) and, more importantly, has only turned the ball over once. If the Vikings want to take down quality opponents, that’s the sort of trend that needs to continue.

The Cardinals fell out of the playoff picture in the NFC with their 16-6 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 12. They’re a part of the log jam in the NFC West, where all four teams are either 6-5 or 5-6 through the first 11 games of the season, so they’re definitely not out of the discussion for the postseason yet. The Cardinals are a quality team and also a team that the Vikings could see in the first round of the playoffs if they manage to climb back to the top of their division.

This will be the third time in the last four years these teams have met in the regular season. The Vikings lost in Arizona in 2021 by a score of 34-33 when Greg Joseph’s field goal attempt at the gun sailed wide, and then they took down the Cardinals at U.S. Bank Stadium in 2022 by a score of 34-26.

According to FanDuel, the Vikings are opening the week as a 3.5-point favorite over the Cardinals, with the over/under resting at 45.5 to start things out.

Kickoff for this one is slated for noon Central time on Sunday afternoon, and the game will be carried by the FOX family of networks.