Who would've thought that the two best teams in the NFL would come from the same division? The Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions are both 14-2 and they'll come to blows for the NFC North title on Sunday Night Football in Week 18.
Check out our betting preview below, which includes our top player prop bet for this marquee matchup. Good luck, fellow sports bettors!
There's been very little movement on this point spread so far. Most oddsmakers opened the line at Detroit -3 and that's still where most online sportsbooks are at. However, there are a few Detroit -2.5s in the market for folks who want to wager on the Lions.
The most interest so far has been on the total. The number initially opened at 51.5 points, but a ton of Over money has driven the line all the way up to 56. If that number holds, it'll be the highest total of the 2024-25 regular season.
One of the biggest surprises of the season has been the stellar play of Vikings QB Sam Darnold. The former USC star struggled with the Panthers and the Jets earlier in his career, but Kevin O'Connell has done a fantastic job of rebuilding his confidence. Darnold has thrown for 4153 yards and 35 TDs on the year.
Aaron Jones has helped take some pressure off the Vikings passing attack, as he's run for over 1,000 yards. However, Minnesota struggles to run the ball on a down-to-down basis. The Vikings rank just 29th in yards per rush this season.
Brian Flores has coached up this Minnesota defense so well that he just might get another shot at a head coaching job. The Vikings rank an impressive 3rd against the run and 4th in third down defense. Byron Murphy Jr. leads the secondary with 6 interceptions and he'll more than likely be on Amon-Ra St. Brown for most of this game.
The Lions have been decimated by injuries to most of their defense this season, as they've lost a ton of linebackers and DBs. However, Detroit's offense has picked up the slack and simply started outscoring every team they play. This team's tenacity is a testament to Dan Campbell's motivational expertise.
Jared Goff continues to be one of the top passers in the NFL, as he's thrown for 4398 yards and 36 TDs this season. I'm shocked this guy isn't getting more love in the MVP market. Goff has a plethora of weapons at his disposal (Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta, and Jameson Williams).
Want to hear a crazy stat about this Detroit squad? Even with the insane number of injuries, they still have the best 3rd down defense in the league! I bet you didn't have that on your bingo card!
Game Prediction: Lions 31 - Vikings 28
I usually think that playing Overs on superstar players is a pretty square betting strategy because the sportsbooks almost always inflate their lines. That being said, I think JJ has a massive day against this mash unit secondary of the Lions.
Jefferson has gone over this line in 4 out of his last 5 ball games with relative ease. The former LSU standout ranks 2nd in the NFL in receiving yards per game and he'll be facing a secondary that ranks dead last in receiving yardage allowed to wideouts.
My projections have Jefferson finishing with at least 99 yards in this NFC North showdown. The emergence of Jordan Addison also means that Jefferson will be getting double-teamed less in this one. Give me the Over!