Giants vs Vikings Betting Odds: Improbable NFC Playoff Matchup in Minnesota

First-year Head Coaches Daboll and O’Connell Lead Teams in NFC Playoffs

When looking at the Giants vs Vikings Betting Odds, the 48-point total is the highest among the six games being played during the wild-card round.

In a league where coaches are hired and fired at a dizzying pace, the Vikings and Giants appeared to have made the right calls with Minnesota hiring Kevin O’Connell on Feb. 16, 2022 after being the offensive coordinator for the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams. That came less than three weeks after former Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll was named the head coach of the Giants.

Both NFL teams would prefer to establish the run with star running backs Saquon Barkley of the Giants and Dalvin Cook of the Vikings likely to play key roles. Minnesota does have perhaps the best receiver in the NFL as Justin Jefferson led the NFL with 1,809 receiving yards and the Giants have been dealing with injuries in the secondary for much of the season.

Both teams had losing records last season so turning things around has been impressive for both franchises even if things haven’t always looked pretty during the journey.

The Giants have covered in seven of the eight games on the road and their 13-4 record against the spread was the best mark this season.

The Vikings (+3000) are ninth and the Giants (+5000) 12th in the odds to win the Super Bowl. They are fifth and sixth in the odds to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.

Game Information

New York Giants

The offensive philosophy was pretty clear from the time Daboll arrived. Quarterback Daniel Jones played the role of game manager with his turnovers being cut significantly from his previous seasons.

The offense went as far as running back Saquon Barkley took it. Barkley averaged 14 carries in the six losses that he played in and nearly 22 carries in the nine wins. Getting Barkley more involved is a key aspect of the Giants vs Vikings Betting Odds.

New York was fourth in the NFL in rushing attempts and 25th in passes attempted. The Giants were 15th in scoring offense and 17th in scoring defense, so this is about as mediocre a team as you will find in the playoffs.

A key for New York has been creating turnovers as the Giants had the second most fumble recoveries in the league.

The Giants have covered in six of their last seven games.

Minnesota Vikings

There are plenty of doubters despite Minnesota’s 13-win season.

Minnesota was 11-0 in one-score games and that included a win over the Giants. The 40-3 home loss to Dallas and a 41-17 defeat at Green Bay play into the sense that the Vikings aren’t as good as their record would indicate. Still, the Giants vs Vikings Betting Odds list Minnesota as the favorite.

Cook averaged a career-low 4.4 yards per carry and there is plenty on the shoulders of Jefferson. Minnesota is 9-1 when Jefferson had more than 100 receiving yards and after managing just 53 yards on five catches in the final two games of the regular season.

There are concerns on defense as only the Detroit Lions allowed more yards per game during the regular season than the 388.7 given up by the Vikings.

The Vikings covered in just one of its last five games.

Injury Update

Offensive lineman Jon Feliciano (back), linebacker Azeez Ojulari (ankle) and defensive lineman Leonard Williams (neck) are questionable for the Giants.

When looking at the NFL injury report for Minnesota, linebacker Brian Asamoah (knee), center Garrett Bradbury (back), running back Dalvin Cook (knee), cornerback Cameron Dantzler (ankle) and safety Harrison Smith (knee) are questionable.

Giants vs Vikings Head to Head

Minnesota topped the Giants 27-24 on Dec. 24 on Greg Joseph’s 61-yard field goal as time expired. Two turnovers were costly for the visiting Giants, the 4.5-point underdogs. It was just the second time in the last six meetings that a Giants-Vikings game finished under the total.

‘Minnesota has won the last four games against the Giants and covered in three of those.’

The matchup on Christmas Eve ended a run of six straight games being decided by double digits.

The Giants won 41-0 as a two-point underdog at home in 2001 the last time the teams met in the postseason. The two previous playoff meetings were decided by one and seven points.

Giants vs Vikings Betting Preview

It isn’t often that a playoff matchup features two teams that allowed more points than they scored during the regular season, however, when looking at the  NFL 2022 playoff bracket, that is exactly what will transpire.

Based on how the teams played during the season, a higher-scoring game would seem to favor the host Vikings.

This is the Giants’ first playoff game since 2017 and just the second since upsetting the Patriots in the Super Bowl following the 2012 season.

The Giants went from winning one of nine road games last season to posting a 4-4 road record this season. The Giants outgained the Vikings 445-353 in one of those road games before falling on a late field goal. Seven penalties and two turnovers proved to be too much to overcome.

Minnesota has lost five of its last seven playoff games, but is 1-1 at home during that stretch, NFL super bowl odds.
Follow us on Twitter

Can’t get enough? Here’s more!

• 2023 NFL Black Monday Odds: How Many Coaches Get Relieved?
• NFL Week 18 Odds Preview: Bring Out the Backups?
• Saturday Night Football Betting Odds: Tennessee Titans vs Jacksonville Jaguars
• Bills vs Bengals Betting Odds: Allen/Burrow First Time Battle
• Week 17 NFL Odds Late Games: Minnesota vs Green Bay-Key Game