Minnesota Vikings at Atlanta Falcons Spread

The Atlanta Falcons (6-4) will be looking for a fifth victory in six games when they host the Minnesota Vikings (2-8) Sunday.

The Falcons are currently listed as a 9.5-point favorite with the total set at 44.

Atlanta jumped out to a 23-3 lead against the Tennessee Titans and held on for a 23-17 win at home last Sunday.

Matt Ryan connected on 22 of 32 pass attempts for 316 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Seven of those completions went to Roddy White, who led the team with 147 receiving yards.

Tony Gonzalez, who caught five passes for 74 yards, hauled in the touchdown pass.

Michael Turner led the way on the ground with 100 yards and a score on 21 carries.

The Vikings are coming off a 27-21 loss at home to the Oakland Raiders.

Rookie quarterback Christian Ponder had a rough game. He completed 19 of 33 passes for 211 yards with two touchdowns but was intercepted three times. Six of his completions, including one of the touchdowns tosses, went to Percy Harvin, who led team with 73 receiving yards.

Adrian Peterson, who is currently sixth in the NFL with 875 rushing yards, ran for 26 yards and a touchdown on six carries before leaving the game with an ankle injury. He is currently listed as doubtful for Sunday.

Even if Peterson can go, there’s a good chance the Vikings won’t be able to get much done on the ground against an Atlanta stop unit currently ranked No. 2 in the NFL against the run with 85.4 yards allowed per game.

While the Falcons have been stout against the run, they rank just 26th in the league against the pass with 253.8 yards allowed per game. The Vikings, however, may not be able to take advantage. They are currently 29th in the league with 180.7 passing yards per game.

The Falcons may be better served to take to the air as well instead of trying to permeate a Minnesota run defense that gives up just 100.7 yards per game (9th in the NFL). Fortunately, the Falcons possess one of the better passing units in the league. They are currently 10th with 248.4 passing yards per game.

The Vikings are currently 28th in the NFL with 259.4 passing yards allowed per contest.

These two have split the last eight meetings with the Falcons winning the most recent one 24-17 in Minnesota on Dec. 21, 2008.

It may be hard for some to bet against the Falcons this week as they are 8-1 against the spread in their last nine games when matched up against an opponent that has a losing record.

The Falcons, however, are just 2-5 against the number in their last seven games when listed as the favorite.

In regard to the total, the under deserves some consideration. After all, Atlanta has finished under the number in each of its last six games.

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