The Miami Dolphins (+8) are making a trip north to visit the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. CBS owns the TV rights and the game’s scheduled to get going at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Miami Dolphins vs. Minnesota Vikings Betting Preview
Miami is getting picked as the underdog and is currently getting 8 points in this game. The Dolphins are also receiving +260 moneyline odds while the Vikings are -330. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 44.5 points. Should the favorite gets behind early, it would likely result in a nice betting opportunity in-game.
Each team has been profitable this season as the Dolphins have gained 4.6 units while the Vikings are ahead 1.4 units.
The Dolphins have gone 7-6 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Vikings are 6-6-1 SU.
Minnesota comes into this contest on a zero-game winning streak while Miami has lost each of its last zero. The Dolphins just got a 34-33 win over New England last week where their secondary allowed the Patriots to air it out for 358 yards and three touchdowns. Rob Gronkowski had a productive day for the Patriots in that one with 107 yards and a score on eight catches. On the offensive side, Ryan Tannehill completed 14-of-19 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns. Frank Gore (92 yards on 12 rush attempts) led the running attack while Kenny Stills (eight receptions, 135 yards, one TD) and Brandon Bolden (one catch, zero yards) shared the receiving duties in the win.
In Week 14, Seattle took care of this Minnesota team by a score of 21-7. The Vikes defense let the Seahawks kill the clock by running for 214 yards on 42 rush attempts, along with one rushing TD. Chris Carson had a good outing in the win, recording 90 rushing yards and a score on 22 attempts for Seattle. For Minnesota, Kirk Cousins completed 20-of-33 passes for 208 yards and one touchdown. Dalvin Cook (55 rushing yards on 13 attempts) spearheaded the running attack while Adam Thielen (five receptions, 70 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
Miami has run the ball on 45.0 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Minnesota has a rush percentage of 34.3 percent. The Dolphins have produced 109 rush yards per game and have six touchdowns on the ground this year. The Vikes are averaging 85 rush yards per game and have six total rushing TDs.
It seems like the Vikes ought to hold an edge in the trenches, as their offensive line has yielded just 32 sacks while the D-line has logged 38 sacks. The Dolphins O-line has allowed 36 sacks and their defense has generated only 22 sacks.
The Dolphins offense has tallied 223 yards/game in the air overall and has 24 passing TDs so far. The Vikes have put up 284 pass yards per game and also have 24 total pass scores.
Defensively, Miami has allowed 139 rush yards and 274 pass yards per game. The Minnesota D has given up 236.1 yards per game to opposing passers and 108.0 yards per game on the ground. The Vikes are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 5.72 to opposing QBs, while the Dolphins have allowed a 6.68 ANY/A.
Offensively, Tannehill is up to 1,441 passing yards this season, and has completed 67 percent of his 173 attempts with 13 passing scores and five interceptions. Tannehill has a 7.08 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 8.38 over the last two outings.
The Dolphins will probably try to maintain tempo by feeding their running backs early and often. In addition to receiver Kenny Stills (467 receiving yards and five touchdowns), Frank Gore (687 rush yards, 114 receiving yards, one receiving TD) and Kenyan Drake (432 rush yards, four rush TDs, 353 receiving yards, four receiving TDs) have delivered in the offensive scheme for Miami.
On the other sideline, Kirk Cousins has connected on 338-of-480 passes for 3,497 yards, 23 TDs and seven INTs. Cousins’ ANY/A stands at 6.78 for the year and 4.10 over his past two outings.
The Vikes also like to utilize their backfield. In addition to Dalvin Cook (200 receiving yards, two receiving TDs), Stefon Diggs (53 rush yards, 866 receiving yards, six receiving TDs) and Adam Thielen (28 rush yards, 1,208 receiving yards, eight TDs) have seen plenty of action lately.
RELATED: Week 15 NFL Betting Odds and Predictions
NFL Prediction: Miami Dolphins at Minnesota Vikings
SU Winner – Vikings, ATS Winner – Vikings, O/U – Under
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Notes
Team Betting Trends
The Dolphins offense has produced eight pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Vikings have put up four such plays.
Both teams have allowed nine pass plays of 40 yards or more. The Miami defense has given up 17 pass plays of 30+ yards while Minnesota has yielded 19 such plays.
The Miami offense has created 11 rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while Minnesota has created 10 such runs.
The Dolphins defense has allowed 16 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Vikings have given up three such runs.
The Minnesota defensive unit has created 38 sacks on the year while Miami has just 22.
As a team, Miami has produced 5.2 yards per carry across its last three games and 5.7 over its last two.
Minnesota has averaged 4.2 yards per carry over its last three contests and 5.1 over its past two.
Minnesota has lost four of its last five games SU, with a seven-point victory over Green Bay on November 25th accounting for its one win over that span.
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