Denver Broncos vs Minnesota Vikings Betting Preview
Fueled by another second-half comeback from Tim Tebow, the Denver Broncos find themselves right back into the thick of the hunt in the AFC West, and will set their sights on winning their fifth straight when they hit the road to take on the Minnesota Vikings who continue to struggle to find wins this season.
Denver vs Minnesota
When: Sunday, December 4, 2011, 4:15 PM EST:00
Where: Mall of America Field at H.H.H. Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV:FOX
LINE: -1 (Minnesota), O/U 37.5
The Broncos are coming off a narrow 16-13 victory over the San Deigo Chargers, and thanks to Matt Prater’s 37-yard field goal with 29 seconds left in overtime, the visiting Broncos defeated the reeling Chargers 16-13 on Sunday to improve their overall record to 6-5 and 4-2 away from Mile High.
Prater’s 38th consecutive field goal keeps the Broncos just one game behind Oakland in the AFC West.
Though Tebow was clutch once again, improving to 5-1 as a starter in 2011, the defense and running game were the big reasons for the Broncos win. Running back Willis McGahee continued his resurgence with 117 yards on 23 carries.
On the other side of the ball, Elvis Dumervill registered five tackles and two sacks, and along with Von Miller have turned into one of the most vaunted pass-rushing duos in the league. The defense has now given up 36 points in the last three games, and is the primary reason Denver has been alive going into the fourth quarter of these games.
Meanwhile, Minnesota is fresh off a 24-14 defeat versus the Falcons and has now slipped to 2-9 overall and 1-4 at home on the season. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Atlanta dominated early and took a 17-0 lead into halftime, but the Vikings didn’t lay down despite playing without star running back Adrian Peterson, as Stanford standout Toby Gehart contributed with 44 yards and touchdown to get Minnesota on the board in the third quarter.
Although the Minnesota running game averages 135.9 yards per contest, good enough for fifth in the league, it was the solid play of receiver Percy Harvin that kept this one remotely close. Harvin had a big game for Minnesota with eight catches for 95 yards and a touchdown along with a 104-yard kickoff return, matching a franchise record.
Defensively, the Vikes surrendered 89 yards rushing and 246 passing, as Matt Ryan ended up going 27 of 34 with three touchdowns and no interceptions for the Falcons. However, they did sack Ryan two times.
Matt’ s Prediction: Broncos 24, Vikings 17-
Points will be hard to come by as Minnesota’s struggling offense will face a defense that should put heavy pressure on QB Christian Ponder. However, both defenses have fared better against the run this year, which is bad news for the passing deficient Broncos.
This game should be a close one to the end, but I expect the Broncos to pull out another one with a slight edge in the running department.
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