The Arizona Cardinals' lead over the NFC West lasted all of one week after their loss last week, and now travel to take on the two-loss Minnesota Vikings as they try to keep their footing in the NFC playoff picture.
My Cardinals vs. Vikings predictions believe Minnesota should be able to handle Sunday's matchup with relative ease and cruise past the -3.5 spread.
Continue reading our free NFL picks for Sunday, December 1. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. EST from U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, with the game airing on FOX.
Cardinals vs Vikings prediction
Who will win?
The Vikings should cruise to a win on Sunday given that their defense is a cranked-up version of the Seattle Seahawks, who just spent all of Week 12 bothering Kyler Murray and James Conner for 60 minutes.
The Cardinals are also among the league's worst teams generating pressure on defense, and opening up the offense for Kevin O'Connell and Sam Darnold.
Darnold should especially benefit from the matchup given his extensively poor splits when facing pressure, giving the Vikings an advantage across this entire matchup.
My best bet
Vikings -3.5 (-110 at BetMGM)
My analysis
After stringing together four straight wins to bring them to 6-4 and atop the AFC West, Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals' offense was brought to a screeching halt by the Seahawks en route to an emasculating six-point performance and loss.
The Seahawks were able to disrupt Murray early and often, getting home against a Cardinals offensive line that had ranked among the top five in pressure rate allowed all season.
And now Arizona will travel to take on Brian Flores and the Minnesota Vikings' defense that blitzes at an ungodly 37% rate and generates pressure at a 29% clip — both league-high marks.
The Seahawks also held James Conner in check, limiting him to just his third sub-50-yard game of the season and rendering him so ineffective that he tied his season-low mark for carries at seven.
And Seattle, even after that elite performance, ranks just 14th in rush defense DVOA. Minnesota not only ranks first in that category, but the gap between them and the second-best team is as large as the gap between that team and the ninth-best team.
Cardinals vs Vikings same-game parlay
Vikings -3.5
James Conner Under 47.5 rushing yards
Kyler Murray Under 0.5 interceptions
Taking the last point and translating it into a same-game parlay leg, we should expect James Conner to go under his rushing total of 47.5 yards.
This is doubly true if we expect the Vikings to jump out to a lead and maintain it, which would force the Cardinals into a pass-centric game script as they play catch-up.
In the passing game, while we expect Kyler to struggle on Sunday he should go pickless. In the face of pressure, Murray tends to either hit the ground for a sack or tuck it and run.
In fact, in his four games against other teams inside the top ten of pressure (the Jets, Rams, Bears, and Lions) Kyler has managed to throw just one interception. In his seven other games, he has three.
Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.
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More NFL picks and odds from Covers
Cardinals vs Vikings odds
Cardinals vs Vikings live odds
Cardinals vs Vikings opening odds
- Spread: Arizona +3.5 | Minnesota -3.5
- Moneyline: Arizona +169 | Minnesota -193
- Over/Under: Over 46 | Under 46
Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Cardinals vs Vikings spread and Over/Under analysis
- Minnesota's 7-3-1 record against the spread is good for the fourth-best cover rate on the year, and their 4-1 record is good for the third-best rate in that split.
- The Cardinals are 7-4 ATS, tied for the sixth-best cover rate in the league.
- Arizona is 3-1 ATS as an away underdog.
- Sunday's total of 44.5 is tied for the lowest total the Cardinals have played in this season, and they went under in both of the previous games at that total.
- 64% of Covers Consensus users are backing Minnesota on the spread, while 69% are taking the Over.
Cardinals vs Vikings betting trend to know
The Vikings have played in six totals at or below Sunday's number, having gone 4-2 to the Under in those games. Find more NFL betting trends for Cardinals vs. Vikings.
Cardinals vs Vikings game info
| Location: | U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN |
| Date: | Sunday, 12-1, 2024 |
| Kickoff: | 1:00 p.m. ET |
| TV: | FOX |
Cardinals vs Vikings latest injuries
Cardinals vs Vikings weather
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