Minnesota Vikings at Cincinnati Bengals: 9/12/21 NFL Picks and Prediction

The Minnesota Vikings and Cincinnati Bengals face off in a Week 1 NFL showdown at Paul Brown Stadium. When these two teams faced off in 2017 the Vikings came away with the 34-7 victory. 

The Vikings finished last season with a 7-9 record but the hope is this year is going to be better. The Vikings defense was a big problem last season but they hoped to improve that bringing in players like Patrick Peterson and guys like Michael Pierce and Danielle Hunter are back. Hunter is one of the best defensive ends in football, and he is going to be a big problem for the Bengals. Anthony Barr is dealing with an injury, and it doesn’t look like he’s going to be able to go in this game. On offense, last season, the Vikings averaged 26.9 points per game which was 11th in the NFL. Kirk Cousins completed 67.6 percent of his passes for 4,265 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions. This is a run first team led by Dalvin Cook and he rushed for 1,557 yards, and 16 touchdowns. Out wide the Vikings are led by Justin Jefferson and he caught 88 passes for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns. 

On the other side of this matchup is the Cincinnati Bengals who finished last year with a 4-11-1 record overall, but they do get Joe Burrow back after he suffered an ACL injury last season. The Bengals offense looked good with Burrow under center, but the offensive line was a big issue last season. The Bengals brought in Riley Reiff who spent his last few seasons with the Vikings and he should help keep Burrow upright. Ja’Marr Chase has been in the news a lot heading into this game because of his comments about his drops during the preseason, Cornerback Trae Waynes isn’t expected to play in this game, which means we should see plenty of Eli Apple in this game.