The Viking Ship

The Minnesota Vikings will host the Seattle Seahawks

Can you believe it’s already Week 11?!? It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago since I was writing game recaps of the preseason games.

This week the Vikings will play the 2nd game of 3 in a row at home as they host the Seattle Seahawks.

Minnesota could potentially have their hands full with Seattle’s offense Sunday if they’re not careful. Seattle isn’t very good running the ball, ranked #27th in the league with 93 yards per game, but they are ranked #13 in passing offense with 244.2 yards per game (just 2.5 yards behind Minnesota).

The Vikings have a good defense this year, but it’s no secret that they are much stronger against the run than the pass. While Minnesota’s defense is 6th in the league in rushing yards per game, they’re a little bit farther down the list at #23 against the pass. Look for Seattle to attack the Vikings secondary more often than they test the waters against the run defense.

Strangely enough, Seattle’s defense nearly mirrors the Vikings. Seattle has the #10 rush defense in the league, giving up around 105 yards per game which is only 8.4 yards more than the Vikings give up. They’re ranked #22 in the league against the pass, giving up 1.1 yards per game less than the Vikings.

The main difference between these two teams is offensive production. The Vikings are one spot ahead of the Seahawks in passing yards per game, ranked at #12 in the league, but they’re 17 spots ahead of Seattle in rushing yards per game, ranked #10 in the league.

The Vikings are also much more efficient with their offense. The Vikings are ranked #5 in 3rd down percentage at 45%, and the Seahawks are at #20 with 38%. And even though the Vikings only average 31.5 more total yards per game than the Seahawks do, they average 10 more points per game. Those are the stats that really contribute to the difference in Minnesota’s 8-1 record and Seattle’s 3-6 record.

Will Winfield Play?

Whether or not Winfield will play seems to be up in the air at this point. He’s been testing his foot during practice, but it sounds as if it will still be a game time decision on Sunday.

It would be nice to have Winfield in the game, since the Seahawks have several potential receiving threats in Deion Branch, Nate Burleson, and TJ Houshmandzadeh.

Personally I expect him to play, but I do think that next week’s game against the Bears is far more important, and if he’s not 100% this week, I’d much rather him sit so he will be 100% next week.

The Viking Ship Keys To Victory:

-Get to Hasselbeck

Hasselbeck has thrown 6 interceptions this game and been sacked 15 times in 7 games started. If the Vikings defense, who leads the NFL with 33 sacks, can get to him, they can force him into making bad throws

-Tough 3rd down defense

The Seahawks are below average in 3rd down conversions in the NFL, so the Vikings will want to turn up the heat on 3rd down. If the Seahawks can’t stay on the field, they’re obviously going to have a hard time scoring

My Prediction

The Vikings will win this one 31-21, and Favre is going to have another big game. Over 300 yards for Brett, over 100 for All Day.