Washington Redskins vs. Minnesota Vikings: Betting Odds, Analysis, NFL Pick

The Washington Redskins and Minnesota Vikings are both coming off huge road wins last week in overtime and will meet for the fifth straight year despite playing in different divisions. The Vikings have won three of the last four games between the teams both straight up and against the spread, but the Redskins have won in five of their past seven trips to Minnesota.

Point spread: Redskins opened as one-point favorites; the total was 44.5 early in the week, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. (Line updates and matchup report.)

NFL pick, via Odds Shark computer: 16.6-14.9 Redskins

Why the Redskins can cover the spread

Washington is coming off its biggest victory of the season and should be playing at a season-high level going into Minnesota after beating the Dallas Cowboys 20-17 in OT on Monday Night Football.

The Redskins were nine-point road underdogs and have won two in a row now with third-string quarterback Colt McCoy under center.

While McCoy may or may not start against the Vikings depending on the health of Robert Griffin III, he has proved to be a strong leader in the huddle replacing benched backup Kirk Cousins.

All McCoy has done is complete 36 of 42 passes he has thrown in six quarters of work for 427 yards. If he or Griffin plays Sunday, the Redskins will have a chance.

Why the Vikings can cover the spread

The Vikings punched home their second road win of the season last week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, beating them 19-13 in OT as one-point underdogs. That spread speaks volumes of how bad Tampa Bay really is right now, but give Minnesota credit for sealing the deal after coming close in a 17-16 road loss to the Buffalo Bills the week before as 6.5-point dogs.

The Vikings appear to be very well-coached under Mike Zimmer, who has kept the team fairly competitive when rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater has been on the field. Bridgewater has demonstrated his will to win the last couple games away from home and will now get to play in front of his own fans again.

Smart Pick

Minnesota will be on a bye next week and has won and covered the spread five straight times in the game prior to that time off. The Vikings have also enjoyed some recent success against NFC East opponents with a 9-3 mark ATS in the last 12 meetings. Even though the Redskins are coming off a huge win, they do not know how Griffin will perform in his first game back from injury or whether or not McCoy will be able to keep up his recent play.

Minnesota simply has more continuity right now and seems to be finding itself offensively with running back Adrian Peterson out of the picture and Bridgewater becoming the new face of the franchise. Bet on the Vikings to cover.

Betting Trends

• Washington is 1-9 SU in its last 10 games on the road
• Minnesota is 4-2 SU in its last six games when playing Washington

Note: All spread and odds data powered by Odds Shark—follow us on Twitter for injury updates and line move updates.