Green Bay vs Minnesota (MIN -1.5, 48.5)
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Green Bay Packers vs Minnesota Vikings
The Green Bay Packers took an early lead against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football and never looked back. Once the second touchdown was scored, the game looked over, and the Packers were in cruise control the rest of the way in a 34-0 win.
That result now puts them to 11-4, and somehow third in the NFC North. In the last two or three years it’s become one of the most competitive divisions in football, and could feature three 13+ win teams heading into the playoffs. That’s never happened before in the history of the league, in any division.
As it stands the Packers would head into the playoffs as the 6th seed, likely facing the L.A. Rams on the road, but any kind of slip up in the final two weeks could result in a trip to Philadelphia to face the Eagles as the two seed.
This weekend's game against Minnesota has plenty of playoff connotations. If the Packers beat out the Vikings there’s a chance they could leapfrog them in the final weekend, which would then mean a visit to either the Atlanta Falcons or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, perhaps a considerably more favorable matchup than the road games against L.A. or Philadelphia.
For Minnesota, winning this weekend shuts down that conversation, and they’d cement their position above the Vikings. But more importantly for them, they’re still in a position to claim the number one seed in the NFC, which would mean a first round bye and an extra week to prepare for their first playoff matchup in the divisional round.
To do that, they need to beat the Packers, which would give them a matchup against Detroit in Week 18 for all the marbles. The winner of that game wins the NFC, it’s that simple.
The matchup between Green Bay and Minnesota earlier this season ended 31-29 to the Vikings. Had it tilted the other way, these two teams would have the same record going into this weekend. They’re evenly matched, and anything can happen in a division rivalry game.
There was over 840 yards of offense in that game back in late September. Jordan Love went for 389 yards and four touchdowns, with three picks, while Sam Darnold threw for 275 and three touchdowns of his own, with one pick.
The second installment promises fireworks, and could be yet another prequel to a third showdown in the playoffs should everything fall into place.
Both teams are going to be up for an intense battle, with a lot to play for.
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Vikings -1