The scars from the Vikings' loss to the Eagles last season are still fresh less than a year after their last trip to Philadelphia for a prime-time game. Minnesota lost 24-7 last September and was out-gained 486 to 264 yards while Kirk Cousins tossed three interceptions in a humbling, early-season defeat. The Birds are favored by seven ahead of this matchup with a point total of 48.
Both of our Chiefs overs fell short of the mark last week as the Super Bowl champs were stunned on home soil by the Detroit Lions. Kansas City was plagued by drops and missed opportunities, which ultimately cost us.
Jared Goff continued his steady, efficient play and aided us in winning one of three best bets during Detroit’s statement victory. He avoided the turnover bug and cashed our under bet on his interception total.
We have another prop card on deck for Thursday’s Week 2 kickoff between the Vikes and Eagles, presented by Underdog Fantasy.
DeVonta Smith OVER 62.5 Receiving Yards
Smith saw seven targets and snagged all of them for 80 yards in last year’s meeting with the Vikings. At the time, it was one of four games in his first eight of the season where the emerging receiver reached seven targets or more.
In the ten regular season games since then, Smith has had at least eight targets each time, averaging 6.2 catches and 80 yards per game. He’s been the perfect complement to AJ Brown in the Eagles’ offense, and their big-play pass-catchers each drew 10 targets in Week 1 against New England.
We see no reason why Smith doesn’t garner 8+ targets again Thursday, and predict he’ll do more with those this week than he did against the Pats.
Kirk Cousins OVER 273.5 Passing Yards
Cousins aired it out 46 times against Philly in last season’s debacle, managing just 221 yards on 27 completions with three catches by guys in green jerseys that we mentioned earlier. Naturally, we’ll be taking him to surpass a total more than 50 yards higher than that on Thursday night.
The Eagles won in a rain-soaked Gillette Stadium during Week 1, but only after allowing Mac Jones to throw for 316 yards and three touchdowns for the first time in his career. Jones attempted a personal record of 54 passes after New England abandoned their run game, which managed just 76 yards on 22 carries.
We project that the Vikings will also struggle to move the ball on the ground and be forced to resort to the air. Minnesota had 17 rushing attempts against Tampa Bay last week and scrounged up just 41 yards for an average of 2.4 per carry.
Cousins hurled 44 passes in the direction of eight different receivers, with 12 going to Justin Jefferson and nine to TJ Hockenson, for a grand total of 33 completions and 344 yards. The Eagles and their powerful, elusive defensive front will make Cousins’ life difficult again on a short preparation week, but this number won’t be a problem for the four-time Pro Bowler.
Jalen Hurts OVER 0.5 Rushing Yards
Underdog’s offering a bonus play this Thursday, and we’ll happily throw it into our picks. Hurts has posted some poor rushing performances as a starter but has had at least 20 rushing yards in 27 of 31 games since 2021. Set this one and forget it.
