Inside The Vikings

Vikings Open as 3.5-Point Underdogs For Saturday's Game in Cincinnati

The Vikings have a tougher task ahead of them this weekend against the Bengals.
Will Ragatz|
Vikings Open as 3.5-Point Underdogs For Saturday's Game in Cincinnati
Vikings Open as 3.5-Point Underdogs For Saturday's Game in Cincinnati

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Minnesota Vikings

Three points isn't going to get it done this weekend. Coming off their strange victory over the Raiders, the Vikings have a tougher task ahead of them on Saturday when they travel to Cincinnati to take on a Bengals team that has been humming on offense over the last couple weeks.

The Vikings have opened as 3.5-point underdogs against the Bengals in what will be another battle of backup quarterbacks: Nick Mullens against Jake Browning.

Both of these 7-6 teams saw their starting quarterback suffer season-ending injuries during the middle of the season and have been trying to work through things since then. Joe Burrow hurt his wrist against the Ravens in Week 11, which meant Browning stepped in during a two-score loss. Cincy lost Browning's first start the following week, falling 16-10 to the Steelers.

But over the past two weekends, Browning — who used to be a Vikings backup — has looked legitimately dangerous. He carved up the Jaguars on MNF in Week 13, going 32/37 for 354 passing yards with two total touchdowns in a 34-31 overtime win. Then he threw for 275 yards with three total touchdowns on Sunday against the Colts, shaking off a pick-six as the Bengals turned a 14-14 game at halftime into a 34-14 win. That's two consecutive games with 34 points against solid defenses.

Brian Flores' red-hot defense will pose major challenges for Browning and the Bengals, but this offense should not be overlooked. There's major skill position talent there with Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Joe Mixon, and rookie Chase Brown.

The Bengals' defense has struggled, rankings 25th in DVOA, 31st in yards allowed, and 19th in scoring. The front four — Trey Hendrickson, B.J. Hill, D.J. Reader, and Sam Hubbard — is quite good, but they've struggled at the second and third levels after losing star safety Jessie Bates III in free agency this offseason.

If the Vikings can protect Mullens, he should have some opportunities to move the football in his first start since 2021.

This should be an interesting game. It's a standalone contest at 12 p.m. central time on Saturday (part of a tripleheader on NFL Network) and carries high stakes for both teams' playoff hopes in their respective conferences.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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