Week 11 NFL Expert Predictions: Arizona At Minnesota
Posted by Eric Williams on Thursday,November 17, 2016 6:31, EDT in
The Minnesota Vikings will look to snap their four-game losing streak when they host an Arizona Cardinals team that’s desperate to find the consistency they’ve been lacking all season long.
Now, let’s find out which one of these NFC playoff hopefuls is offering the most value.
In Depth Analysis On The Week 11 NFL Expert Predictions: Cardinals At Vikings
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, November 20, 2016
Where: U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: FOX
Live Stream: FOX Sports GO
Odds: Arizona -1 / Total: 41
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals (4-4-1 SU, 3-6 ATS) may not look much like the 13-win team they were last season, but they managed to get past lowly San Francisco 23-20 last weekend to pick up a win for the first time in their last three games. The good news for Cardinals fans and betting backers heading into this matchup, is that Arizona has won six of their last eight road games. For the season, veteran quarterback Carson Palmer is completing 62.5 percent of his passes for 2,444 yards with 11 touchdowns but eight costly interceptions.
Palmer has hooked up with future Hall of Fame wideout Larry Fitzgerald and ‘beastly’ running back David Johnson for 1,140 receiving yards and six touchdowns while Johnson has added a team-high 760 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. Unfortunately, Arizona hasn’t been able to translate their play into a bunch of points like last season and currently rank 20th in scoring at 22.4 points per game. Defensively, Arizona Cardinals is ranked a stellar sixth in points allowed by limiting the opposition to just 17.8 points per game.
Minnesota Vikings
After winning their first five games this season, the Vikings (5-4 SU, 5-4 ATS) have lost four straight games and come into this Week 11 matchup off a humbling 26-20 loss against Washington. Making matters worse is the fact that Minnesota has been limited to 20 points or less in each of their last four games. For the season, veteran quarterback Sam Bradford is completing a blistering 69.6 percent of his passes for 2,022 yards with 11 touchdowns and two interceptions.
Wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen have combined for 1,163 receiving yards and four touchdowns while running back Jerick McKinnon has rushed for a team-high 241 yards and one touchdown. While Minnesota is ranked a stellar third in points allowed (16.9 ppg), the Vikings are also ranked an uninspiring 26th in scoring at 19.4 points per game.
Expert Prediction and Pick
Arizona has scored 23 points or more in three of their last five games and are starting to play much better defense as they’ve limited four of their last five opponents to 21 points or less and two of those opponents to six points or less.
Arizona will also have the best player on the field in gifted dual-threat running back David Johnson and just have the look of a team that is more focused right now. I’m also not sure if many people knew how much the resignation of offensive coordinator Norv Turner would affect the Vikings, but it clearly has.
The Vikings are 19-7 ATS in their last 26 home games, but they’re also 0-4 ATS over their last four games. More importantly, Minnesota just doesn’t look right lately while Arizona’s desperation is clearly evident. I’m going with the Cards to get the road win and ATS cover.
Pick: Arizona 24 Minnesota 21
