New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings: Week 8 Betting Pick

The New Orleans Saints (+0) are flying north to visit the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. The pivotal Sunday Night showdown kicks off at 8:20 p.m. ET and NBC will broadcast the action.

Week 8 Betting Preview: Minnesota Vikings vs. New Orleans Saints

Vegas has set the over/under (O/U) at 53 points. It appears that this contest ought to have some in-game betting possibilities.

The O/U hasn’t moved after being set initially at 53. Having said that, the line opened at -2 and has recently moved up to 0.

The Saints have gained 0.6 units so far and are 4-2 against the spread (ATS). The team’s posted an O/U mark of 3-3.

The Vikings have gained 3.4 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 4-2-1 ATS and own an O/U record of 4-3.

The Saints are 5-1 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Vikings are 4-2-1 SU.

The Saints just scored a 24-23 win over Baltimore last week where Drew Brees completed 22-of-30 passes for 212 yards and two touchdowns. Alvin Kamara (64 yards on 17 rush attempts, one TD) and Mark Ingram (32 yards on 12 carries) provided the ground attack while Michael Thomas (seven receptions, 69 yards, one TD) and Benjamin Watson (six catches, 43 yards, one TD) handled the receiving duties in the win.

Minnesota is coming off of a 37-17 win over the Jets a week ago. Kirk Cousins completed 25-of-40 passes for 241 yards and two touchdowns. Latavius Murray (69 rushing yards on 15 attempts, two TDs) handled the running game while Adam Thielen (nine receptions, 110 yards, one TD) and Stefon Diggs (eight catches, 33 yards) led the pass-catching corps in the win.

New Orleans has run the ball on 42.8 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Minnesota has an overall rush percentage of 33.6 percent. The Saints have rushed for 108.3 yards per game and have 11 touchdowns on the ground this year. The Vikes are logging 87.4 rushing yards per game and have four total rush TDs.

The Saints offensive scheme has averaged 313.3 yards through the air overall and has 13 passing TDs so far. The Vikes have put up 308.9 pass yards per outing and have 14 total pass scores.

Defensively, New Orleans has allowed 72.3 rush yards and 308.5 pass yards per game. The Minnesota defense has allowed 280.0 yards per game to opposing passers and 89.7 yards per game to opposing runners. The Vikes are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 6.53 to opponents, while the Saints have given up a staggering 8.55 ANY/A.

Offensively, Brees is up to 1,507 passing yards on the year. The signal-caller has completed 144-of-191 attempts with 10 scores through the air and has yet to throw an interception. Brees has a pristine 8.33 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 10.55 over the past two outings.

In the hosts’ locker room, Kirk Cousins has connected on 186-of-266 passes for 1,929 yards, 13 TDs and two INTs. Cousins’ ANY/A stands at 7.14 for the year and 5.81 over his past two games.

New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings Free NFL Tip

SU Winner: Saints, ATS Winner: Saints, O/U: Over

Team Betting Trends,

The Minnesota defense has sacked opposing quarterbacks 21 times this season. New Orleans has registered just 13 sacks.

Both offenses have lost six fumbles this season.

The Saints offense has tallied two pass plays of 40 yards or more, while the Vikings have accounted for three such plays.

Both teams have allowed seven pass plays of 40 yards or more. The New Orleans defense has given up nine pass plays of 30+ yards while Minnesota has permitted 16 such plays.

The New Orleans offense has created two rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while Minnesota has created eight such runs.

The Saints defense has allowed two rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while the Vikings have given up zero such runs.

The Over/Under for Minnesota’s last game was set at 44.5. The over cashed in that 37-17 victory over the Jets.

In its last three games, Minnesota is 3-0 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.

In its last three contests, New Orleans is 3-0 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.

The O/U for New Orleans’ last game was set at 49. The under cashed in the team’s 24-23 victory over Baltimore.

As a team, New Orleans has rushed for 3.9 yards per attempt over its past three outings and 3.3 over its last two.

Minnesota has averaged 4.6 yards per carry over its last three matchups and 5.1 over its past two.