Bet on another low-scoring primetime Eagles-Vikings game at Lincoln Financial Field

When you think about the Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles taking the field for a Thursday Night Football matchup, you think high scoring and explosive offense.

Both teams ranked top ten in points per game and yards per game offensively a year ago and have a lot of key pieces back on both offenses, including the likes of Justin Jefferson, Jalen Hurts, and A.J. Brown.

But I’m here to tell you that I don’t project this game to be the type of shootout you may imagine it to be. BetMGM and other NFL betting sites have the totals market for this game set at 49.5 points, and I see these teams just missing that mark.

(8:15 p.m. ET Thursday, Amazon Prime Video)

For starters, these NFC teams aren’t strangers to one another. The teams have faced off six times since 2010, including in a Week 2 primetime game last year in Philadelphia, where just 31 points were scored in a 24-7 win for the Eagles.

Philadelphia picked off Kirk Cousins three times in that game, with those interceptions being the biggest difference maker in a game that saw the Eagles out-gain Minnesota by over 200 yards.

» READ MORE: Follow this service academy trend and back Navy to cover Thursday vs. Memphis

Cousins’ primetime struggles were on full display that night, with his record under the bright lights dropping to 12-20. But what’s most interesting looking back at that game was how blanketed Justin Jefferson was in coverage by Darius Slay.

Jefferson was covered by Slay on 18 snaps and only caught one pass for seven yards. Slay also intercepted Cousins twice on passes to Jefferson. While I don’t expect Jefferson to be that ineffective this time around, it’s worth keeping that history in mind.

But now I shift my attention to these two teams’ 2023 outlook and reflect on their Week 1 efforts. Neither offense looked great in their season openers, with Minnesota putting up 17 and the Eagles’ offense only scoring one touchdown.

The Vikings’ box score might not look bad with 369 total yards, but three turnovers from the Vikings offense stopped them from scoring more points. On the Eagles’ side, it wasn’t until the fourth quarter that they started moving the ball, as they went 4/13 on third down and only had 251 total yards.

Finally, it’s important to note that these teams are far from finished products. We saw a lot of sloppy offense across the NFL in Week 1 as teams shook off the preseason rust. It’s fair to wonder how much more rust may need shaken off.

» READ MORE: College futures: Texas Tech, Washington are live long shots to win their conferences

When looking at the injury report for this game, the Eagles’ secondary could be an area of weakness. Without starters James Bradberry, Reed Blankenship, and Nakobe Dean, their much-heralded defense from last year won’t be at full power.

On the Vikings’ offensive line, center Garrett Bradbury is out and left tackle Christian Darrisaw is questionable. If Darrisaw can’t go, the Eagles pass rush could have a big day. After only sacking Mac Jones twice in Week 1, the front seven will look to have a bounce back performance.

Another reason this game could be low scoring is the Vikings rushing attack left a lot to be desired last week, with Alexander Mattison getting 34 yards on 11 carries. The Eagles defense struggled against the pass in Week 1 but their run defense was on point, holding Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliot to 54 yards on 19 attempts.

If Cousins has no help from the ground game, he’ll be more prone to making mistakes against an Eagles defense that ranked seventh in takeaways per game last season. With Slay likely trailing Jefferson all game, Cousins will need to count on Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson in key situations.

Ultimately, I wouldn’t be surprised if these teams find a way to put up a lot of yards given Philadelphia’s injuries and Minnesota’s defense not being the most talented group. But 49.5 points seems just a tad too high for two teams coming off of Week 1 struggles in a matchup that was a defensive battle a year ago in this same situation.

» READ MORE: Full sports betting coverage from The Philadelphia Inquirer

The Inquirer is not an online gambling operator, or a gambling site. We provide this information about sports betting for entertainment purposes only.