Jets vs. Vikings Prediction: Do the Jets Have the Secret Sauce to Slow Down Jefferson?
By Josh Yourish
It’s Mike White time in New York for at least another week, as long as he wins games and plays well, the 2021 No. 2 pick, Zach Wilson will stay on the bench. Last week, White led the Jets to a 31-10 win over the Bears and now at 7-4 they will stay in the NFC North and head up to Minnesota in Week 13. The Vikings are not only 9-2, but they are well rested coming off of their 33-26 win over the Patriots on Thanksgiving.
Both of these teams are firmly in the playoff race and look like they’ll have a spot on the postseason, but it’s hard to believe in either of them as contenders, so this is the “Nobody Believes in us” Bowl and hopefully it’ll answer a lot of questions.
Let’s check out the odds for Minnesota and New York and see how they’ve moved this week.
Jets vs. Vikings Odds, Spread and Total
Jets vs. Vikings Odds, Spread and Total Movement in NFL Week 13
The Vikings opened as 4.5 point favorites in this game, but it has moved 1.5 points in the Jets direction. The total has also moved from 43.5 to 45.
Jets vs. Vikings Prediction and Best Bet
Christian Darrisaw has not participated in practice this week after missing last week's game with a concussion. Darrisaw, the Vikings All-Pro caliber left tackle, will be such an important piece for the Vikings to get back. The Jets defense generates the fifth most pressure in the league and they do it while blitzing the third least.
Kirk Cousins relies on Justin Jefferson to get him out of tough situations, especially when he gets heated up in the pocket, so Sauce Gardner will be a huge key for New York. Nobody can shut down Jefferson, but if he can slow him down at all and make Cousins second guess throwing his way, then that is advantage Jets.
I think the Jets matchup really well with Minnesota. They can generate pressure without blitzing and have a long, athletic, young corner that has been able to shut down other top notch receivers this season. If Mike White can give them enough on offense, then I think the Jets win this game, even on the road.
You would think this would be a step up in competition for White after playing the Bears, but Minnesota has the worst pass defense in the league by yards allowed per game and yards per attempt.
Pick: Jets +3 (-110)
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change