NFL

Minnesota Vikings vs. New York Giants odds, expert picks, how to watch Week 1’s tightest matchup

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1 week ago

September 8, 2024

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Minnesota Vikings vs. New York Giants odds, expert picks, how to watch Week 1’s tightest matchup

One of Week 1’s tightest matchups is the Vikings in New Jersey to face the New York Giants in an early Sunday game. The sportsbooks have this one very close on the spread.

Giants’ head coach Brian Daboll is not messing around in his third season: He’ll do the offensive play-calling. His quarterback is once again Daniel Jones, who is an enigma of sorts. On one hand, Jones is 22-36 in five seasons. On the other, he produced a playoff win in 2022, and led the NFL in lowest INT percentage that season. He’s careful but sometimes too conservative. Giants fans want more “Danny” than “Daniel” from Jones.

Minnesota is starting quarterback Sam Darnold, who may as well be called “Suitcase Sammy” for all the traveling he’s done around the NFL. The former No. 3 overall pick is on his third team in three seasons. He’s never shown the ability to pass downfield accurately: Darnold has a 63-56 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 66 games.

The Giants face the possibility of a favorable schedule in the first two weeks. After battling Darnold and the Vikings, they play the Commanders in Week 2, a game they should be favored to win.

In both games, New York is matched against a backup or rookie quarterback. Nose tackle Dexter Lawrence II is a rarity in the modern NFL: an interior lineman who muscles his way to the quarterback despite having to contend with double teams or blocking schemes off both his shoulders. In the last two NFL seasons, Lawrence has 81 total pressures from the true nose tackle position, which is 65 more than the next closest nose tackle. He’s a throwback, and if he gets Darnold in his sights, the Giants will force Minnesota into long-yardage plays.

The Vikings were hamstrung by a -12 turnover differential last season, and it doesn’t bode well that Darnold is being asked to orchestrate this offense with his penchant for floating, soaring “who knows where they may land” passes.

All odds from BetMGM. Looking for NFL tickets? Find them here.

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