Cincinnati Bengals vs Minnesota Vikings: A Preview and Prediction for Saturday's Game

Cincinnati is hoping to improve to 8-6 on the season.

Author:
Elise Jesse
Publish date:
Dec 15, 2023 8:38 AM EST

In this story:

Every game for the rest of the season is a pivotal matchup for the Cincinnati Bengals if they want to return to the postseason for the third-straight year.

The Bengals host the Vikings on Saturday at Paycor Stadium. Zac Taylor’s team holds a 4-3 record at home this season and they opened up as a 3.5-point favorite.

Cincinnati won't face “The Passtronaut” Josh Dobbs again this year. He was benched in favor of veteran Nick Mullens. The 28-year old played in the fourth quarter last week after the Vikings' offense struggled with Dobbs under center. Dobbs had started the previous four games after being traded from the Arizona Cardinals prior to the Oct. 31 deadline.

Mullens went 9-of-13 for 83 yards to lead the Vikings to a 3-0 win over the Raiders.

Yes, Minnesota managed to win the lowest scoring game of the week without a touchdown. The Vikings have only scored one touchdown in their last nine quarters.

Justin Jefferson will play this week, despite suffering a chest injury in the win over the Raiders. He's listed as questionable, but told reporters he would be ready to go.

Ja’Marr Chase's former LSU teammate returned from a hamstring injury just to take a hospital hit from Marcus Epps on his second catch of last week’s game. It was a huge hit. He didn't return to the game and received medical attention to make sure he wasn’t experiencing internal bleeding.

"This week is a new week and I'm definitely looking to have a great game," Jefferson said.

Minnesota’s offensive line will have to figure out a way to handle Trey Hendrickson. The Bengals star has 13.5 sacks on the season, which is tied for third in the league. Hendrickson is one sack away from breaking his own franchise record for sacks (14) that he set in 2021.

Hendrickson had seven or more pressures for a second-straight game last week according to NextGen Stats. We could see Mullens running for his life on Saturday with "Blackout Trey" on the hunt.

On the other side, Cincinnati’s offensive line didn't allow a single sack of Jake Browning or AJ McCarron in Week 14. They allowed just three quarterback hits against a Colts team that entered the game with the third-most sacks in the league.

Their job will be difficult again this week with Danielle Hunter leading the Vikings with 13.5 sacks, 58 quarterback pressures, and 18 tackles-for-loss.

The Bengals will also have to deal with Cincinnati’s own Ivan Pace Jr. The rookie went to Colerain High School before taking his collegiate career to Miami (OH) and the University of Cincinnati. The reigning NFC Player of the Week went undrafted before earning a reputation for being one of Minnesota’s best players. He has 43 tackles, 2.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one interception this season. He has the talent and grit to wreck a game plan better than most.

When AllBengals reached out to Pace’s former high school football coach, Tom Boldin asking for a few words to describe the 22-year old, we received a GIF of the Tasmanian Devil tearing through a scene.

“He’s the TAZ”, Boldin wrote. “The most lovable, tenacious player you will ever meet!”

Overall, Minnesota’s defense ranks 26th in stopping the run, which gives the Bengals the perfect opportunity to lean on their running backs for a third straight week.

Cincinnati's current run game is like a cold glass of ice water in the middle of the Sahara Desert: refreshing and something you hope doesn't run out.

Joe Mixon has scored three touchdowns over the last two weeks and Chase Brown has exploded onto the scene in a cosmic way. He scored his first NFL touchdown last week and injected some speed and excitement into Cincinnati's ground game.

“I can tell that boy’s been taking notes,” Mixon told All Bengals following Cincinnati’s 34-14 win over Indianapolis. “I like to see that. It’s a great thing to see. He’s doing the little things right, and that’s what we teach in our running back room.”

Browning and the offensive line have benefited from having a reliable run game.

In the 1.5 games without an aggressive rushing attack, Browning went 27-40 for 295 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and was sacked seven times. The Bengals lost both games. Losing Joe Burrow mid-game didn't help, but the offense didn't look much different the following week against Pittsburgh.

The Bengals have leaned on the rushing attack in wins over the Jaguars and Colts. They have 63 rushing attempts for 267 yards in those wins. Browning went 50-of-61 for 629 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

Browning is 77-for-102 with 924 passing yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions in three stars.

Prediction: The over/under has been set at 39.5 points. I think this will be a low scoring affair with the Bengals winning the Week 15 matchup 17-10 to improve to 8-6 on the season. I think turnover differential will come into play this week. Cincinnati is +10 on the season and Minnesota is -5.

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