Minnesota Vikings vs. Jacksonville Jaguars NFL Betting Odds & Spread

Written November 21, 2008 by Jason Lowry

The Minnesota Vikings (5-5) will look to keep pace with the rest of the NFC North when they travel to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars(4-6) this Sunday. The Vikings had a chance to take sole possession of the division last week, but fell 19-13 on the road to the Buccaneers. As for the Jaguars they have now lost 3 of their last 4, as they fell to the Titans 24-14 at home. Now there isn’t much that separates these two teams record wise, but there is no question this is a much bigger game for the Vikings, as the Jaguars have very little shot of making the playoffs in the AFC. For those of you looking to bet on the NFL this weekend, the oddsmakers have the Jaguars 2.5 point favorites at home over the Vikings at Sportsbook.com

The Vikings had won two straight, but just didn’t have enough offense to pull out the victory. Adrian Peterson had another solid day at work running for 85 yards on 19 carries, and the Vikings are hoping that by giving Peterson an easier practice schedule they can save his legs, as they need him to win football games. Gus Frerotte wasn’t terrible throwing the football, but he did have a 138 yards and a touchdown, and kept from turning over the football. Now the key for this unit is finding a way to get Peterson in the endzone, as they explosive back leads the league in rushing, but has just 7 touchdowns on the season.

The Vikings defense continues to play solid football, and it looks like they got a star in the making in linebacker Chad Greenway, who led the team with 16 tackles and a sack last week, but other than a forced fumble it was the biggest play this defense made, and with the talent they got on this side of the football its just not enough if this team wants to win the division and make a statement in the playoffs this season. The Vikings will have to stop the running game of the Jags this week, as its really the only weapon they have on the offensive side of things. Bet Vikings +2.5 at Sportsbook.com

Now the Jaguars run game has been a complete disappoint this season, and Fred Taylor has been a complete bust after making his first Pro Bowl last season, as Taylor has just 416 yards on the ground. Now a lot of that has to do with a depleted offensive line, but this guy is better than he is showing on the field this season. Last week Maurice Jones Drew got the ground game rolling early with two second quarter touchdown runs, but that was the only scoring the Jags could muster the whole game. David Garrard really struggled throwing the football, completing just 13 of his 30 passes for 135 yards and an interception. With a line like the Jaguars got, there is little hope for this season the rest of the way.

Now the Jaguars defense didn’t have much luck either last week, as they let the duo of Chris Johnson and LenDale White to run for 116 yards, and they were even worse against the pass, as Kerry Collins needed just 13 completions to rack up 230 yards and 3 touchdowns. Now the Vikings are pretty much all run when it comes to attacking the other team, but if they let Frerotte have a day like Collins did, this one won’t even be close. Bet Jaguars -2.5 at Sportsbook.com

With the games just around the corner, grab the latest NFL odds, and check out the best NFL picks from Betfirms.

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

No comments yet, but your thoughts are welcome!