Arizona Cardinals vs. Minnesota Vikings: Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 10/30/2022

Time: 1 p.m. ET

Venue: U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN

Where to watch: FOX

DraftKings: Vikings -3.5

FanDuel: Vikings -3.5

BetMGM: Vikings -3.5

Caesars: Vikings -3.5

Cardinals: 3-4

Vikings: 5-1

Cardinals: won 42-34 vs. Saints (Thursday night)

Vikings: Bye (won 24-16 at Dolphins on Oct. 16)

The Arizona Cardinals have had a few extra days to figure out if that win over the New Orleans Saints was actually something to come. The Cardinals are coming off a 42-34 win over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football that was aided by defense, surprisingly. The Cardinals had back-to-back pick-sixes to close the second half to turn a 14-14 tie to a 28-14 lead. Kyler Murray threw for 204 yards and a touchdown and Eno Benjamin, the backup running back, ran for 92 yards on 12 carries and ran for a touchdown. In his first game of the season after serving a six-game suspension, Deandre Hopkins caught 10 balls for 103 yards; do the math and that is half of the completions Murray completed that ended up going to Hopkins. That’s a great way to get your No. 1 back in the fold, but who else is going to step up in this struggling offense? Zach Ertz caught just two passes, Robbie Anderson didn’t have a single catch on just one target in his Arizona debut. Also, how will Murray and Kliff Kingsbury recover after a heated verbal exchange. They won, so maybe it wasn’t that big of a deal, but alas, they need to have a better performance against the leaders of the NFC North, especially when the opponents are still not believable. Time will tell if that can actually come to fruition.

The Minnesota Vikings are perhaps the more weird 5-1 team that has ever come across these doors, but their winning ways and the Green Bay Packers losing a lot has put the Vikings in position to take a stranglehold in this division. Before their bye, the Vikings were coming off a 24-16 win against the banged-up Miami Dolphins. Kirk Cousins threw two touchdowns, while Justin Jefferson continued his run as one of the best receivers in football with six catches for 107 yards, his 18th career 100-yard game in just his second year in the league. That’s the third most by a player in his first three seasons; Odell Beckham and Randy Moss had 19. Dalvin Cool also had his fourth rushing touchdown of the year. Defensively, we’re looking at Danielle Hunter hitting his fourth sack of the year, and Za’Darius Smith had two sacks to give him a team-high 5.5.

We’re about to find out sooner rather than later that the Vikings are for real. This is the time that a Kirk Cousins-quarterbacked team needs to absolutely take control of this situation. They are in first place while the Packers are folding, the Lions are bad and the Bears are just there. This is the Vikings’ time. They have a chance to prove they are part of this conversation with the Eagles, Giants, Cowboys, etc. as the top teams in the NFC. Can a Kirk Cousins-quarterbacked team even make that possible? Not sure, but one thing to do is to beat a Cardinals team that hasn’t been up to par as of late, but isn’t out of the woods yet. Maybe we’ll get a Patrick Peterson revenge game. Who knows? Vikings win by 10

Cardinals are 10-3 ATS in their last 13 as road underdogs.

Cardinals are 6-0 ATS in last six as road underdogs of 3.5-7 points.

Cardinals are 10-3 ATS in last 13 October games.

Vikings are 4-10 ATS in last 14 as a home favorite.

Vikings are 7-12 ATS in their last 19 at home.

Passing: Kyler Murray -- 1,667 yards, 7 TD, 4 INT

Rushing: Eno Benjamin -- 265 yards, 2 TD

Receiving: Zach Ertz -- 320 yards, 2 TD

Defense: J.J. Watt -- 2.5 sacks

Passing: Kirk Cousins -- 1,502 yards, 9 TD, 5 INT

Rushing: Dalvin Cook -- 450 yards, 4 TD

Receiving: Justin Jefferson -- 654 yards, 2 TD

Defense: Za'Darius Smith -- 5.5 sacks