Scott Shapiro's Thursday Night Football preview: Redskins-Vikings

Week 7 started well, with an easy victory Thursday night and a 2-1 record for the early Sunday games, but things went poorly from there, as a disappointing 3-4 week was capped by a pathetic effort by the Eagles in Dallas.

Week 8 of the NFL season offers handicappers a number of lopsided games, starting with the Thursday-night tussle in the Twin Cities between the Washington Redskins and the Minnesota Vikings.

Washington Redskins at Minnesota Vikings, 8:20 p.m. ET, FOX

The sky appeared to be falling on the Vikings after a pitiful offensive Week 4 performance in Chicago, but since that 16-6 loss, Minnesota has won three straight, including an impressive 42-30 victory against the Lions in Week 7. The Vikings defense has played well this season, and the running game led by Dalvin Cook has been one of the NFL’s best (160 yards per game and 5.0 yards per carry), but most notable over the last three contests has been the play of quarterback Kirk Cousins.

Cousins failed to turn the ball loose over the first quarter of the 2019 campaign, and it resulted in some lackluster performances. Since then he has played at a level that makes the Vikings serious contenders in the NFC. Since the ugly loss to the Bears, Cousins has completed 68 of his 90 passing attempts for 976 yards and 10 touchdowns.

And the former Redskins quarterback should be fired up to play his former team Thursday night.  I expect Cousins to play well once again, but he is likely to be without his No. 1 target, Adam Thielen, who left the game against the Lions early with a hamstring injury. Without Thielen, Minnesota’s weapons on the outside are limited, other than Stefan Diggs, which will make a fourth straight 300+ yard game for Cousins difficult.

The Vikings will take on a Redskins pass defense that has been better than average in 2019 (236 yards per game), but keep in mind these numbers include a Week 7 game in sloppy conditions against the 49ers, where neither team could muster anything significant through the air. Without Thielen and a short week of preparation, look for Minnesota to lean heavily on the running game in a game where points will likely be harder to come by than they were in the Motor City a week ago.

Cousins going against his former team will command the headlines, but a couple of former Vikings players will also be seeking revenge on Thursday night at U.S. Bank Stadium. Future Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson will be in the backfield and quarterback Case Keenum will be at the helm for Washington. Both players face a tough matchup against a Minnesota defense that plays at its best at home, but that unit is banged up and playing on short rest.

Defensive tackle Linval Joseph (knee) and defensive end Everson Griffen (quadriceps) may play, but both will likely be less than 100%. Hercules Mata’afa and Xavier Rhodes were also listed on Monday’s injury report. I do not anticipate a massive game by any stretch from Bill Callahan’s Washington offense, but he will stick with the running game and should be able to get enough out of Keenum to keep this game somewhat competitive.

The Vikings are 14-5 over the last three seasons against the number at home—including a 3-0 mark in 2019—and are 9-3 ATS in October games during that span, but that is clearly baked into the line. It is tough to get excited about endorsing the Skins in 2019, but this number just seems a bit too high.

Pick: Washington (+15.5)

Scott Shapiro’s 2019 NFL record ATS on BetAmerica heading into Week 7: 29-22 (3-4 last week)