Atlanta Falcons @ Minnesota Vikings, 1:00 PM
The Atlanta Falcons have now lost three games in a row and are 6-6 on the season. Just a few weeks ago, they were 6-3 and in a great position to simply run away with the NFC South in 2024. Well, the momentum is shifting, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are right on their tails at 6-6 as well. With Atlanta holding the tiebreaker, Tampa Bay will have to finish with a better record to win the division.
They travel to Minnesota to host the Vikings, a team that simply keeps finding ways to win games, and their latest example was an ugly, comeback win at home against the Arizona Cardinals. Not only do the Vikings keep winning, but QB Sam Darnold is still playing well this late into the season, and the Vikings are now 10-2.
They are still barely keeping pace with the Detroit Lions in the NFC North, but the Lions do have the 11-1 record. The two teams will have one more divisional matchup left, so both teams here in this game could be playing for a ton in Week 14.
I just have no faith in Kirk Cousins and the Falcons at this point. I mean, Cousins just threw four interceptions at home against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 13, and he just does not seem to have the arm strength that he used to. There could be rumblings that Cousins could head to the bench in favor of Michael Penix Jr, and I am not sure it would be a wise idea for the Falcons to bench Cousins now and trot out Penix for his first NFL start in Minnesota against a very good team.
Kirk Cousins should start this game, but the end may be near, and this could be a rout by the Vikings, as the Falcons will then have lost four games in a row.