The NFL has given the world some truly horrendous Thursday night matchups over the years. However, that’s not the case to kick off Week 4 as the Minnesota Vikings visit the Los Angeles Rams in what could be an NFC Championship Game preview. The Rams are favorites by 6.5 points.
The Rams led the league entering the game with a third-down conversion rate of 46.7 percent but were just 3 for 11 against the Vikings. Jared Goff went 22 for 37 for 225 yards and no turnovers, taking one sack.
The Vikings are 27-16-2 all-time against the Rams franchise, a team that the Vikings have played in Los Angeles and St. Louis. This will be Minnesota’s first game against the Rams in Los Angeles since 1992 when the Vikings won 31-17. The Vikings have had the upper hand of late by winning the past five matchups, although the previous two meetings have been in Minnesota.
The Vikings’ six rush attempts were their fewest since the AFL-NFL merger, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The only other time since 1970 that Minnesota attempted fewer than 10 rushes was Dec. 18, 2016, against the Colts (nine attempts). Latavius Murray rushed two times for one yard and added five catches for 30 receiving yards. Top running back Dalvin Cook sat out. Cook (hamstring) considers himself day to day and is unsure of his Week 4 status against the Rams. Cook said there’s a “good chance” he’ll be ready for Thursday’s game, but that’s actually a downgrade from the weekend when he said he would “definitely” be out there.
Kirk Cousins completed 40-of-55 passes for 296 yards, one touchdown, and an interception in the Vikings’ Week 3 loss to the Bills. The Vikings’ offensive line didn’t help matters, allowing Cousins to be blindsided and strip-sacked on the team’s first two possessions. Minnesota’s passing offense was playing catch-up from that point forward as Cousins was forced to attempt 55 passes under duress for the remainder of the afternoon. Adam Thielen hauled in 14-of-19 targets for 105 yards.
Todd Gurley rushed 23 times for 105 yards and one touchdown and caught five passes for 51 yards in the win. Gurley now has at least 19 carries in all three games. Gurley converted a goal-line carry for his fourth touchdown of the year. Robert Woods caught 10-of-11 targets for 104 yards and two touchdowns vs. the Chargers.
The news wasn’t all good as Pro Bowl cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib both left with injuries. Peters has been diagnosed with a strained calf and is expected to miss 2-4 weeks. Even though Peters could miss upwards of a month, it’s actually good news after it appeared Peters could have injured his Achilles’ tendon against the Chargers. It’s not year clear if Talib will play with his ankle injury.
How to Bet Vikings vs Rams NFL Week 4 Odds & Game Info
“Still just taking this thing day to day and just going to see how it feels come Thursday.” – @dalvincook on his hamstringhttps://t.co/OCDbd8tRDg
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) 24 de septiembre de 2018
- When: Thursday, 8:20 PM ET
- Where: LA Memorial Coliseum
- TV: Fox/NFL Network
- Radio: SiriusXM
- Live Stream: NFL League Pass
- NFL Week 4 Odds: Rams -6.5 (Total 49)
NFL Week 4 Over/Under Betting Picks
Weather Forecast
- Partly Cloudy: 22°C/71°F
- Humidity: 72%
- Precipitation: 2%
- Cloud Cover: 41%
- Wind: 5 mph WSW
- Stadium Type: Open
Last Meeting
In Week 11 last year, the Rams were dominated in a 24-7 loss at Minnesota – the fewest points L.A. scored all season when it led the NFL in offense. Latavius Murray rushed for 95 yards and two touchdowns, and Adam Thielen turned a short catch into a 65-yard score for the Vikings. Case Keenum completed 27 of 38 passes for 280 yards and no turnovers. He’s now in Denver.The Rams led the league entering the game with a third-down conversion rate of 46.7 percent but were just 3 for 11 against the Vikings. Jared Goff went 22 for 37 for 225 yards and no turnovers, taking one sack.
The Vikings are 27-16-2 all-time against the Rams franchise, a team that the Vikings have played in Los Angeles and St. Louis. This will be Minnesota’s first game against the Rams in Los Angeles since 1992 when the Vikings won 31-17. The Vikings have had the upper hand of late by winning the past five matchups, although the previous two meetings have been in Minnesota.
Why Bet on Minnesota?
You probably had the Vikings in your Suicide Pool on Sunday. Sorry if so as they were stunned 27-6 at home as 17-point favorites over the Buffalo Bills. They became the 15th underdog of 17 or more points to win a game in the Super Bowl era and the largest underdog to pull off an upset since the Washington Redskins knocked off the Dallas Cowboys 24-17 as 17.5-point underdogs on Dec. 3, 1995. There had been 24 favorites of 17 or more points since that game; each of them prevailed.The Vikings’ six rush attempts were their fewest since the AFL-NFL merger, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The only other time since 1970 that Minnesota attempted fewer than 10 rushes was Dec. 18, 2016, against the Colts (nine attempts). Latavius Murray rushed two times for one yard and added five catches for 30 receiving yards. Top running back Dalvin Cook sat out. Cook (hamstring) considers himself day to day and is unsure of his Week 4 status against the Rams. Cook said there’s a “good chance” he’ll be ready for Thursday’s game, but that’s actually a downgrade from the weekend when he said he would “definitely” be out there.
Kirk Cousins completed 40-of-55 passes for 296 yards, one touchdown, and an interception in the Vikings’ Week 3 loss to the Bills. The Vikings’ offensive line didn’t help matters, allowing Cousins to be blindsided and strip-sacked on the team’s first two possessions. Minnesota’s passing offense was playing catch-up from that point forward as Cousins was forced to attempt 55 passes under duress for the remainder of the afternoon. Adam Thielen hauled in 14-of-19 targets for 105 yards.
Team Stats
Offense- Average Score For: 19.67
- Total Yards: 371.67
- Rush Yards: 66.00
- Passing Yards: 305.67
- Average Score Against: 24.00
- Total Yards: 323.33
- Rush Yards: 105.33
- Passing Yards: 218.00
Why Bet on LA Rams?
The Rams are the Mybookie.ag favorites to win the Super Bowl and have yet to be challenged much in starting 3-0. QB Jared Goff completed 29 of 36 (80.6 percent) for 354 yards with three touchdowns and one interception for a 123.8 passer rating in the Rams’ 35-23 win against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Goff, who threw for 354 yards and completed 75 percent of his passes (24 of 32) in Week 2, is the third quarterback in league history with at least 350 passing yards and a completion percentage of 75 or higher in consecutive games. Kansas City’s Trent Green accomplished the feat in consecutive games in Weeks 8-9 of the 2004 season and Tampa Bay’s Ryan Fitzpatrick did it the first two games this year.
Todd Gurley rushed 23 times for 105 yards and one touchdown and caught five passes for 51 yards in the win. Gurley now has at least 19 carries in all three games. Gurley converted a goal-line carry for his fourth touchdown of the year. Robert Woods caught 10-of-11 targets for 104 yards and two touchdowns vs. the Chargers.
The news wasn’t all good as Pro Bowl cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib both left with injuries. Peters has been diagnosed with a strained calf and is expected to miss 2-4 weeks. Even though Peters could miss upwards of a month, it’s actually good news after it appeared Peters could have injured his Achilles’ tendon against the Chargers. It’s not year clear if Talib will play with his ankle injury.
Team Stats
Offense- Average Score For: 34.00
- Total Yards: 439.34
- Rush Yards: 133.67
- Passing Yards: 305.67
- Average Score Against: 12.00
- Total Yards: 296.00
- Rush Yards: 96.67
- Passing Yards: 199.33
NFL Week 4 ATS Betting Picks
Vikings vs Rams NFL Week 4 Betting Trends
- Vikings are 5-0 SU in their last five games vs the Rams
- Vikings are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games at night
- Rams are 1-9 SU in their last 10 games on a three-game SU winning streak
- Rams are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games on Thursday
- The total has gone OVER in 6 of Minnesota’s last 8 games on the road
- The total has gone OVER in 6 of LA Rams’ last 9 games
