Minnesota Vikings bold predictions in an important NFC showdown with the Buccaneers.
While riding a hot streak in the middle of the 2020 NFL season, the Minnesota Vikings will take part in another extremely important game this weekend when it comes to trying to claim an NFC playoff spot at the end of the year.
Minnesota will hit the road for a big game in the conference standings when it takes on a tough NFC opponent looking to bounce back on its home field.
On Sunday afternoon in Week 14, the Vikings take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay.
Not only is this game an important one for Minnesota in order to keep the positive wave as of late rolling, but it’s also a big game between teams who are currently in the final two NFC Wild Card spots in the conference with a few games remaining in the regular season.
The Vikings come into the game in Week 14 with a record of 6-6 overall, sitting in seventh place and the final Wild Card spot in the NFC. Minnesota has won five of its last six games going into Sunday, a remarkable turnaround to get back into the playoff picture.
The Vikings most recently took down the Jacksonville Jaguars in a 27-24 overtime victory in Week 13 at home in Minnesota, officially getting back into the postseason bracket with four games left to go in 2020.
With Minnesota hoping to continue to climb up the standings and move above .500 and Tampa Bay looking to get back into the win column on Sunday afternoon in Week 14, let’s dive into some predictions that will occur in the NFC contest.
3. Brady and the Buccaneers give Vikings defense fits
One thing that hasn’t happened so far in the 2020 season for Tampa Bay until Week 12 was the Buccaneers losing two straight games. When Tampa Bay lost to Kansas City in Week 12, it marked its second straight defeat for the first time in the new year.
Coming off of their annual bye week in Week 13 while hoping to bounce back and avoid a three-game losing streak, the Buccaneers will likely try to come out firing against the Vikings and take Minnesota out of the game early on.
Now led by Tom Brady under center leading the offensive in Tampa Bay, the Buccaneers’ weapons on offense will be too much for the Vikings defense to handle, providing Minnesota with a handful throughout the course of the NFC showdown on Sunday afternoon.
Going into Week 14, Tampa Bay holds the 18th-ranked offense in the NFL, including the 10th-ranked passing offense and the 27th-ranked running attack. With Brady and the weapons in the receiving group, it’s easy to understand why the Buccaneers are so potent in the passing game.
On Minnesota’s side, it holds the 23rd-ranked defense in the NFL going into Week 14, and the lack of depth and the plethora of youth on the defensive side of the ball has fed into that a bit to this point in the 2020 campaign.
On Sunday in Week 14 in Tampa Bay, Brady and the Buccaneers will try and expose the Vikings defense early and often and will give Minnesota all it can handle defensively in the game.