Editor’s note: NESN.com’s Mike Cole, Ricky Doyle and Andre Khatchaturian deliver their NFL picks every Thursday of the season, and here’s who they like in the Detroit Lions-Minnesota Vikings Week 9 game, with the line from OddsShark.
(4-4) Detroit Lions at (-6) Minnesota Vikings (5-2), Sunday, 1 p.m.
Mike: Lions. My advanced handicapping statistics (don’t ask) indicate these teams are much closer than maybe the records indicate. Is playing in Minnesota worth six points? I don’t think so, especially not with how porous the Vikings’ offensive line looks.
Ricky: Lions. I would have felt much differently about this game just a few weeks ago. But the Vikings’ flaws — patchwork offensive line, no rushing attack, lackluster quarterback play — have been exposed, and it’s hard to predict at this point what Minnesota’s offense will look like now that offensive coordinator Norv Turner resigned Wednesday. Give me the points.
Andre: Lions. Sam Bradford struggles to move the ball when he?s under pressure and the Lions can get some pressure up front (18 sacks) against a struggling Vikings offensive line. Every Lions game has been decided by seven points or less, so I think Matt Stafford and the Vikings’ inept offense makes it a close game.
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Thumbnail photo via Raj Mehta/USA TODAY Sports Images
