Minnesota Vikings vs Detroit Lions Prediction, Preview and Odds - 01/05/2025

Game Time: 8:20 pm ET, Sunday, January 5, 2025

Venue:  Ford Field, Detroit, MI 

Where to Watch:  NBC

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Vikings +2.5, Lions -2.5; Over/Under:  56.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Vikings +3, Lions -3; Over/Under:  56 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Vikings +2.5, Lions -2.5; Over/Under:  56 points

Minnesota Vikings:  14-2 (2nd place, NFC North)

Detroit Lions:  14-2 (1st place, NFC North)

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Minnesota Vikings:  won their last game at home against the Green Bay Packers 27-25.

Detroit Lions:  won their last game on the road against the San Francisco 49ers 40-34.

The Vikings are entering this game with a 14-2 record overall and they have a 4-1 record in their divisional games too. They are 7-1 in their home games, 6-1 in their road games, and they are also 1-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They won their last game against the Green Bay Packers 27-25. Sam Darnold was the starting QB and he completed 33/43 passes for 377 passing yards, 3 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Aaron Jones led the team in rushing yards with 47. Justin Jefferson led the receivers with 92 receiving yards on 8 receptions. Blake Cashman led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 5 assisted tackles while Blake Cashman led the defense in sacks with 1.5. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

 

 

 

The Lions are entering this game with a 14-2 record overall and they have a 5-0 record in their divisional games too. They are 6-2 in their home games, 8-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They won their last game against the San Francisco 49ers 40-34. Jared Goff was the starting QB and he completed 26/34 passes for 303 passing yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Jahmyr Gibbs led the team in rushing yards with 117 and 1 TD. Jameson Williams led the receivers with 77 receiving yards on 5 receptions and 1 TD. Terrion Arnold led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 0 assisted tackles while Brian Branch and Myles Adams each led the defense in sacks with 1. Kerby Joseph came away with the only 2 interceptions for them in that one.

The current betting odds have the Lions listed as a 2.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Lions have looked great in their games this season with their 14-2 record overall which leads the NFC North with one of the best records in the entire NFL. They currently have the number 1 seed in the NFC, but they could lose it in this game so they are going to be bringing their best effort. Meanwhile, the Vikings have also looked great in their games this season with their 14-2 record overall which has them in 2nd place of the NFC North and in a Wild Card spot. The Vikings are behind the Lions in the division, but a win in this game would give them the NFC North and the number 1 seed so there is a lot on the line here for both teams, especially since the loser will drop to the 5th seed and will have to play on the road in the Wild Card Round. The Vikings are coming off a tight 27-25 win over the Packers in their last one while the Lions are coming off a 40-34 win over the 49ers. The Lions haven't looked great on defense lately with all of their injuries, but their offense has been putting up a ton of points in their games lately and will do the same here. The Vikings have been the much better team on defense lately, but they almost blew a lead against the Packers last week at home and won't be able to stop the firepower that the Lions have on this offense. It will be tough for the Lions to stop all of this talent that the Vikings have too, but the Lions already beat the Vikings in Minnesota earlier this year in a game where they were able to shut down this Vikings offense, and now the Lions will have the home advantage to feed off in this one. The best way to place a bet here is on the Lions to cover the spread in this game. 

Vikings Lions Prediction:  Our NFL Pick for Sunday, January 5, 2025 (8:20 pm ET start time) is Lions 31 Vikings 28.

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Minnesota Vikings: 0-6 ATS in all games where the total is greater than or equal to 49.5. 5-10 ATS versus good rushing teams - averaging 130 rushing yards/game or more. 8-2 OVER as a road underdog of 7 points or less. 11-6 OVER versus division opponents. 13-4 OVER when playing against a team with a winning record.

Detroit Lions: 37-16 ATS in all games. 14-6 ATS in games where the line is +3 to -3. 20-6 ATS after scoring 30 points or more last game. 11-2 ATS after a game with a turnover margin of +2 or better. 32-20 OVER in all games. 18-9 OVER in home games. 11-3 OVER after a win by 6 or less points. 7-2 OVER vs. good teams - outscoring opponents by 6+ PPG on the season.

Minnesota Vikings:  S. Gilmore (CB) Injured - Rest. H. Smith (SAF) Injured - Foot. C. Ham (FB) Injured - Ankle. F. Moreau (CB) Out - Hip. B. Cashman (LB) Injured - Hip. P. Jones (OLB) Injured - Knee. J. Oliver (TE) Injured - Wrist. I. Pace (LB) Questionable - Hamstring. J. Redmond (DL) Injured - Concussion.

Detroit Lions:  T. Arnold (CB) Injured - Illness. D. Montgomery (RB) Injured - Knee. G. Glasgow (OL) Injured - Knee. K. Raymond (WR) Injured - Foot. J. Reeves-Maybin (LB) Injured - Neck.

“Just to see how he's ultimately been able to maximize everything about his opportunity, our football team loves him for it. I've had an absolute blast coaching him.” - Kevin O’Connell after his team’s win against the Packers in their last game. 

“I ended up settling on the right thing to do was playing those guys. We owed it to the team. That was tough. I think the biggest thing is there was things we wanted to do better than we did last week, and we did." - Dan Campbell after his team’s win against the 49ers in their last game. 

WR Jefferson, Justin 

WR Addison, Jordan

WR Nailor, Jalen

TE Hockenson, T.J.

QB Darnold, Sam

RB Jones, Aaron

FB Ham, C.J.

WR Patrick, Tim

WR Williams, Jameson

WR St. Brown, Amon-Ra

TE LaPorta, Sam

QB Goff, Jared 

RB Gibbs, Jahmyr 

Passing: S. Darnold (4153)

Rushing: A. Jones (1093)

Receiving: J. Jefferson (1479)

Touchdowns: J. Jefferson (10)

Passing: J. Goff (4398)

Rushing: J. Gibbs (1273)

Receiving: A. St. Brown (1186)

Touchdowns: J. Gibbs (16)

Coaches:

Minnesota Vikings: Kevin O'Connell (3rd season)

Detroit Lions: Dan Campbell (4th season)