The Minnesota Vikings, after an uncharacteristic loss in week one to Tampa Bay, will look to bounce back in their week two matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday Night Football. The odds are definitely against them, especially after last year’s match between these two teams, in which the Eagles routed the Vikings 24-7 on Monday Night Football. However, Minnesota is ready to get their revenge tonight, and here are three reasons why the Vikings will upset the Philadelphia Eagles in this prime-time matchup.
1. Eagles Missing Two Key Defenders
The Vikings are ready to let star receiver Justin Jefferson ball out against this Eagles’ secondary. Philadelphia will be without their best corner tonight in James Bradberry, in what would have been a great matchup between him and Jefferson. Instead, corner Josh Jobe will take the privilege of guarding the Vikings’ number-one receiver in his first career start. However, the Eagles may put Darius Slay on Jefferson, trying their best to make him a non-factor.
The Eagles will also be without linebacker Nakobe Dean, who is out with a foot injury. Dean in his second year with Philadelphia, has been great at picking up the tight end in coverage. However, with Dean out tonight, Nicholas Morrow will have to fill in the void, as the Vikings will most likely look for the tight end throughout the game.
2. Vikings Limiting Mistakes on Offense
In the game against the Buccaneers, Minnesota’s offense struggled with giving away the football, in which they had three turnovers. These mistakes led to the upset in Minneapolis, with Tampa Bay walking out with a 20-17 win. Even though this was a game the Minnesota Vikings were supposed to win, there is a positive factor that they can take away and build from. The fact that the Vikings lost by three points, even considering the turnover differential, is a good sign, as long as they can clean up their mistakes.
Quarterback Kirk Cousins, aside from his offensive line not giving him time to throw the ball, still threw for 344 yards and two touchdowns, and he’ll look for even more production in week two. With Jefferson being the centerpiece of attention for the Eagles’ defense, Cousins will most likely look in the direction of new target Jordan Addison, who looked very promising in his debut.
3. Continuing the Trend of Upsets
In week one, a big trend going around the league was great teams losing to opponents who were not supposed to even keep it close. Some upsets included the Bengals getting shut down by the Browns 24-3, the Lions surprising the Chiefs 21-20, and, of course, Tampa Bay edging out the Vikings 20-17. Will this trend of upsets spill over into the second slate of NFL games?
In particular, Minnesota has struggled against the Eagles, going 2-6 against their NFC foe since the year 2001. However, the Vikings are due for a win in Philadelphia, even if they are 6-point underdogs. With Philadelphia in a bit of a transitional period when it comes to coordinators, the Vikings will look to have them on their toes throughout this game.
Prediction
With the odds stacked against them on this Thursday night prime-time matchup, the Minnesota Vikings will pull off the upset in Philadelphia, winning by a score of 27-22, in a game in which Kirk Cousins will torch the Eagles’ defense, throwing for over 400 yards and three touchdowns. The Eagles’ offense will struggle to get in rhythm, which will be the deciding factor in this game.
