Minnesota Vikings vs. Green Bay Packers 2019: Prediction Against The Spread, Betting Odds For Week 2

The Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings are tied atop the NFC North as the only teams in the division to win their respective season openers. That won’t be the case for long with Kirk Cousins and Co. set to take sole possession of first place in Week 2 of the 2019 NFL season.

Minnesota will face Green Bay Sunday afternoon at Lambeau Field. Visiting the Packers as three-point underdogs, according to the latest betting line at OddsShark, the Vikings have a great chance to win outright and pull off the upset.

The two rivals rode their respective defenses to victories in Week 1. Green Bay held the Chicago Bears without a touchdown at Soldier Field, winning 10-3 on the road in the first game of the regular season. Minnesota shut out the Atlanta Falcons 28-0 over the first three quarters of their contest, allowing 12 points in garbage time before moving to 1-0 on the year.

Look for the Vikings to win a low-scoring affair that falls below the game total of 44.5.

Green Bay’s offense didn’t exactly look like a juggernaut in their first game under rookie head coach Matt LaFleur. The Packers totaled 213 yards of offense, finding their way into the end zone once. Much of that had to do with the Bears’ vaunted defense, though the Vikings might be nearly as good as Chicago on that side of the ball.

Shutting down Matt Ryan and Atlanta’s high-powered offense in Week 1 was no fluke for Minnesota. The Vikings ranked fourth in total defense in 2018, making them a top-four unit for the third straight year. Mike Zimmer’s team has even found ways to limit Aaron Rodgers’ effectiveness during that time.

The two teams played to a 29-29 tie at Lambeau Field in Week 2 last season, though Green Bay’s offense was responsible for just 22 points in 70 minutes of game time. The Vikings beat the Packers 24-17 in Week 12, limiting Rodgers to 198 yards in the air.

An injury mostly kept Rodgers off the field against Minnesota in 2017. In 2015 and 2016, the quarterback posted a passer rating below 87.0 in three of the Packers’ four games with the Vikings.

Rodgers has been sacked an average of four times per game when facing Minnesota since 2015. He was sacked five times in the season opener. With Ryan being sacked four times and facing constant pressure from Minnesota in Week 1, the Vikings could get to Rodgers plenty Sunday afternoon.

Cousins was barely asked to do anything against Atlanta, completing eight of 10 passes for 98 yards and a score. He threw for 767 yards, seven touchdowns and one interception while completing 75.3 percent of his passes against Green Bay last season.

The Packers’ defense looks much improved in 2019. Offseason additions Adrian Amos, Preston Smith and Za’Darius Smith all stood out as Green Bay only gave up a field goal last week. Mitchell Trubisky’s ineptitude deserves a portion of the credit. Cousins will perform better than the Bears’ signal caller did.

Dalvin Cook bullied his way to 111 yards and two scores in Week 1. You can be certain he won’t suffer the same fate as Chicago’s running backs, who Green Bay held to 35 yards on 12 attempts.

The Packers have one win straight up and two wins against the spread in their last seven matchups with the Vikings, according to OddsShark. The Vikings are 9-3-1 against the spread in their last 13 September games.

The Vikings are the most complete team in the NFC North, and they’ll prove it with a win over the Packers.

Prediction Against The Spread: Minnesota over Green Bay, 23-17