Presented by

NFL Expert Picks: Vikings Return Home as Favorites Against Cardinals

Nov 29, 2024 at 04:28 PM

Sam Thiel

Contributor

However you want to describe it, November was one to remember for the Minnesota Vikings.

Although there have been several ups and downs lately in all three phases, Minnesota (9-2) walked out of the month with a 4-0 record, closing it with three consecutive road victories. It was just the 11^th time in franchise history and the first since 2017 that Minnesota has played three consecutive games away from home.

Unlike the previous 10 squads, though, this year's team became the first to win all three consecutive road matchups. It is also just the eighth time in team history the Vikings have posted an unbeaten record in the month of November, with the most recent instance coming again in 2017 (3-0). The other six seasons were: 1969 (5-0), 1988 (4-0), 1990 (4-0), 1999 (3-0), 2005 (4-0) and 2009 (4-0).

On Sunday, the Vikings will kick off the month of December with the first of three consecutive home games when they host Arizona (6-5) at noon (CT) at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Minnesota enters the matchup hoping to extend an impressive streak that dates back three decades: since Oct. 13, 1991, the Vikings have not lost a home game against the Cardinals. The last Cardinals victory in Minnesota came on Nov. 6, 1977, a 27-7 win at Metropolitan Stadium when the Cardinals still based in St. Louis.

The Vikings current 11-game home win streak against the Cardinals (including one postseason game) is tied for the second-longest against an opponent at home in the NFL. Philadelphia also has an 11-game home win streak against the Giants. San Francisco's 14-game streak over the Lions leads the way.

Minnesota and Arizona have met 30 times in their history, including twice in the postseason, with the Vikings holding an 18-12 advantage in the all-time series.

This year is also the 25^th time in team history the Vikings have played three or more consecutive home games in a season. Minnesota has won three consecutive home games in a season nine times, most recently in 2009.

Let's see who the experts are picking to win the game:

Vikings 31, Cardinals 21 – Pete Prisco, CBS Sports

The Cardinals are coming off a road loss to the Seahawks, while the Vikings are home for the first time in three weeks. The Arizona offense seemed to struggle last week at Seattle, and now it will be challenged by the Minnesota defense. I think the Vikings limit Kyler Murray, and the Minnesota offense will hit a few big plays to Justin Jefferson to win it.

Vikings 23, Cardinals 20 – Staff, Bleacher Report

The Arizona Cardinals lost some momentum on the other side of their Week 11 bye, losing 16-6 to the Seattle Seahawks on the road. They'll continue to travel and face one of the league's best squads.

The Minnesota Vikings squandered a 3.5-point cover last week, allowing the Chicago Bears to score 11 points in 22 seconds, but [Bleacher Report NFL analyst Gary] Davenport believes they can force the Cardinals offense to be one-dimensional like the Seahawks did last week with a stout run defense, which will allow them to win decisively.

"It's a hard call – the Cardinals struggled to generate offense last week in Seattle, but six of Minnesota's nine wins are by single-digits this season," Davenport said. "The notion of this coming down to a late field goal isn't far-fetched…"

[…]

"But with T.J. Hockenson back at tight end, the Minnesota offense is stacked, and the Vikings run defense is as good as any in the league," Davenport added. "That should be enough for the home team to clear this number."

Vikings 30, Cardinals 27 – Bill Bender, Sporting News

The Vikings are 4-1 with three one-score victories at home this season. Arizona had its four-game winning streak snapped, and they are 2-3 on the road this season. Kyler Murray took five sacks last week. The protection will need to be better if the Cardinals want to pull an upset, but we think the Vikings charmed season continues in a wild early-window game.

Vikings 21, Cardinals 13 – Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News

The Cardinals are much better at running the ball and playing defense at home for Jonathan Gannon. The Vikings have become red-hot offensively again, and they will be ready to go after Kyler Murray in what becomes a one-dimensional attack. Minnesota gets the key sacks and turnovers to win comfortably again.