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Vikings at 49ers: Odds, trends and more

By Matt Verderame

Sep 7, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson (28) looks on during the second half against the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome. The Vikings defeated the Rams 34-6. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 7, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson (28) looks on during the second half against the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome. The Vikings defeated the Rams 34-6. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /
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The San Francisco 49ers are opening their National Football League regular season against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football at Levi’s Stadium. San Francisco was one of the best teams in the league from 2011-13 before falling to 8-8 last year. Meanwhile, the Vikings have been a middling franchise at best during those years.

Yet, Minnesota is favored by three points on the road over San Francisco, according to BOVADA. The line for over/under is at 42, with the oddsmakers expecting a low-scoring affair. This is a pretty large line for a road team, considering a home team is always given a field goal advantage off the bat.

The Vikings finished 7-9 last year under first-year head coach Mike Zimmer and are expected to make major strides in 2015. Minnesota is going into the second year of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s career and are getting Adrian Peterson back form suspension. Peterson missed the last 15 games of 2014 while on the commissioner’s exempt list. The Vikings also traded for Mike Wallace and drafted two highly-touted defensive stars in corner Trae Waynes and inside linebacker Eric Kendricks.

On the other side, no team had a worse offseason than the 49ers. San Francisco watched as Anthony Davis, Patrick Willis, Justin Smith and Chris Borland retired. Then, to make matters worse, Aldon Smith was released and Frank Gore, Mike Iupati, Michael Crabtree and Chris Culliver all left in free agency. The only notable addition was Torrey Smith, who should provide Colin Kaepernick with a deep threat.

If you believe in trends, don’t bet on San Francisco. Per OddsShark, The 49ers have not covered at home in each of their last five games. However, the Vikings are a brutal 2-14-1 in their last 17 games away from Minnesota. The under seems to be the right bet. The Vikings have seen the score go under in four of their last five road games, while the 49ers have gone under in six of their past seven games overall.

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