A majority of the underdogs in Week 17 will be on the road. I’ve looked over the current NFL odds at BetMGM, and there are two underdogs that I think have an excellent chance at covering this week.
Belowย are the NFL underdog odds for road teams that I think offer the most value in Week 17.
Vikings (+6.5) at Packers
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 2nd
- Time: 8:20 p.m. EST
- Venue: Lambeau Field in Green Bay, WI
This week, the Minnesota Vikings need a winย over the Green Bay Packersย to stay in the playoff hunt. They’ve already beaten the Packers earlier this year in Week 11.
It wasn’t a win where the Packers just madeย lots of mistakes, either. Aaron Rodgers threw for 385 yards and four touchdowns with zero interceptions. The Packers also had zero lost fumbles. Even so, the Vikings beat them with a balanced attack.
The Vikings relied on the running game to open up the play-action for Kirk Cousins, and their plan worked. Dalvin Cook rushed for 86 yards and a touchdown while Cousins threw for 341 yards and three touchdowns. Luckily for the Vikings, coach Mike Zimmerย hopes Cook will returnย against the Packers after missing the teams’ last game on the COVID reserve list.
Minnesota has only lost by seven points or more three times this entire season. As for Green Bay, they’ve won their last two games by a combined three points.
The Packers have allowedย 166.3 rushing yards per game in their last three contests, which is third-worst in the NFL. With Dalvin Cook coming back, I believe the Vikings will use their running game to keep the game close and set up the play-action for Kirk Cousins like they did last game.ย I think they’ll be able to keep this gameย within the 6.5 points.
Lions (+7) at Seahawks
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 2nd
- Time: 4:25 p.m. EST
- Venue: Lumen Field in Seattle, WA
The Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions are now both out of playoff contention.
The Seahawks haveย won five games compared to the Lions’ two wins, but I don’t understand why this spread is so large.
The Lions have won two of their last four games against solid opponents. They beat the Vikings 29-27ย and thenย blew out the Arizona Cardinalsย by a score of 30-12.
On the other hand, the Seahawks haven’t won a game in two weeks and have lost five of their last seven. Their most recent loss was to the Chicago Bears 25-24.
This season, Detroit has struggled on both sides of the ball, but they’ve improved over the past three weeks. On offense for the season, they rank 16th in rush yards per game (112.8) and 24th in pass yards per game (202.1). However, in the last three weeks, they’ve averaged 124.7 rushing yards per game and 206 passing yards.
On defense, they rank 27th in opponent yards allowed per game (372.1), but in the past three games, they’re only allowing 336.7 yards (15th). This week, the defense shouldn’t have too much trouble containing the Seahawks, who rankย 20th in rush yards per game and 28th in pass yards per game.
With the Lions starting to gel, I think they’ll keep this game close, if not win outright.
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