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Prediction: SEA 20, MIN 9 (Line: SEA by 6)

Update: Not liking that the game is going to be played right around zero degrees but it will be clear and not windy. I am still going to lower the game score though. That cold makes it hard to catch a football that is more like a rock. The sun will be out on Sunday but this is shaping up to be one of the coldest games played in NFL history. The Vikings will get NT Linval Joseph back and that will help defend the run.

Adrian Peterson was held out of practices but returned on Friday after resting his sore back. He’ll play without any limitation.

Marshawn Lynch was downgraded to out for this game after suffering a setback on Friday.

This is a replay of Week 13 when the Seahawks pounded the Vikings 38-7. The Seahawks have won six of their last seven and are rolling up 30 points or more on almost all of their opponents. The Vikings have also stepped up in recent weeks with both a big offensive showing and their defense holding their last three opponents to 17 points or less. The Seahawks are on a very impressive stretch of games with an offense that suddenly became red hot. But the Vikings have also surprised and is at home with that defense. But it is hard to get past that 38-7 shellacking just five weeks ago.

The Seahawks came back from their Week 9 bye and were never the same. The offense that struggled to post more than two scores per game starting churning out the points every week and suddenly the mediocre passing offense lost Jimmy Graham and realized they could connect with their wide receivers. Even the loss of both Marshawn Lynch and then Thomas Rawls did not slow down the machine. This is a replay of an earlier big win but shouldn’t be nearly as dominating a win. If it is, then the rest of the NFC have been served notice.

QUARTERBACK : Russell Wilson is on a seven game stretch of multiple scores with 24 touchdowns over that time. He passed for 274 yards and three touchdowns in Minnesota in Week 13 and even scored his only rushing touchdown of the year. So far Wilson has been unstoppable for the last seven weeks and that includes already shining in Minnesota earlier this year.

RUNNING BACK : Christine Michael ran for a career high 102 yards on 17 carries in Arizona last week though the entire game seemed like the Cardinals just didn’t care. Bryce Brown scored once in that game as well. But HC Pete Carroll expressed optimism that Marshawn Lynch may return from his lengthy abdominal injury. I’ll assume he will play in a part-time manner since he has missed the last seven weeks.

Thomas Rawls ran for 101 yards and a score on 19 carries in the previous game in Minnesota. He also added three catches for 22 yards but Lynch’s workload likely won’t be that heavy for his first game back. Michael will also figure in.

WIDE RECEIVER : Doug Baldwin ended his five game scoring streak when he only managed 46 yards on five catches in Arizona while getting to know CB Patrick Peterson and crew. But Baldwin’s impressive 11 touchdowns over five games included five receptions for 94 yards and two touchdowns in Minnesota. Jermaine Kearse had no catches that week though he has scored in each of the last two weeks. Tyler Lockett caught seven passes for 90 yards in Week 13 but his production varies greatly week to week.

The Vikings will have already seen the passing scheme this time but the Seattle offense has really been clicking.

TIGHT END : No fantasy value.

MATCH TO THE DEFENSE: The Vikings defense has been solid at home and that last Russell performance was already the most allowed all year. No other team ever passed for more than two scores and no team passed for more than the 274 yards as a visitor. That should limit Russell more this time around though he should be good for two scores as have most of the better opponents there.

The rushing effort is not likely to be as productive with at best a part-time Lynch and at worst Michael and Brown offering a mediocre tandem if Lynch does not play. The passing scores almost certainly end up with the wideouts. The Vikes have allowed 11 touchdowns to visiting wideouts this year and both Baldwin and earlier Keenan Allen turned in double scores there.

Baldwin is a must start now and should see success again this week – a lesser productive rushing game only translates into more passing. Lockett is a decent risk pick but Kearse is too inconsistently used. I like a defensive score in this game.

This week is going to come down to Teddy Bridgewater and it will provide him with a chance to prove that he can take the next step up and become more than a mere game manager. The rushing game that the Vikings thrive with is going to be hard to rely on and the loss of TE Rhett Ellison with a torn patellar tendon won’t make the run blocking any better. A win here would give the franchise a big lift but another bad loss sends the Vikes into the offseason once again trying to come up with anything more than the aging Adrian Peterson on offense.

QUARTERBACK : Teddy Bridgewater’s second season turned into mostly just handing off to Adrian Peterson. He’s thrown for only 14 touchdowns and four came in a freak win over the Bears in Week 15. Otherwise it would be 10 scores over 15 games and over half failing to top 200 passing yards. Bridgewater passed for only 118 yards and one interception in the previous meeting for his worst showing of the year until his 99 yards versus the Packers last week.

RUNNING BACK : Adrian Peterson’s worst game of the year was when he ran for 18 yards on eight carries in the previous loss to the Seahawks. He caught four passes as a season high but only gained six yards. Peterson left the game last week with a lower back injury but is expected to play this week. His absence would be catastrophic to the offense and even his inclusion did not do much in Week 13. But he is the only way that the Vikes have hope of controlling the ball versus the Seahawks.

WIDE RECEIVER : The only bright spot for the Vikings receivers this year was the rookie Stefon Diggs who led the wideouts with four touchdowns and two 100 yard efforts. But he faded badly starting at mid-season and scored in only one game since Week 8. He was held to only 22 yards on two carries versus the Seahawks while Jarius Wright was limited to a similar two receptions for 24 yards. Mike Wallace has been a nonfactor all year but managed two catches for 43 yards versus the Seahawks.

This is the #31 set of wideouts in the league and the Seahawks already shut them down – as have most all opponents.

TIGHT END : Kyle Rudolph came up with five touchdowns in the regular season and even produced a 106-yard effort with a score in the first meeting with the Packers. But he was just blanked by the same team last week and was held to only 13 yards on three catches in Week 13. He’s managed more than two catches in only six games this year.

MATCH TO THE DEFENSE: The Vikings defense is good – underrated even. But the last meeting would have been a shutout were it not for a 101 yard kick return for a score. A banged-up Adrian Peterson only managed 18 yards in the last meeting when he was healthier. The Vikings did just beat the Packers after losing to them in Week 11 but they had a fumble return for a score and the only offensive touchdown was by Peterson who is facing the #1 rush defense again.

The Vikings have a way of scoring on defense and special teams that often ends up willing games that seem unlikely. But the Seahawks are red-hot right now and already bowled them over once this year. This go around should be slightly better but not enough to merit investing in Vikings players this week.

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