Though at home, the Minnesota Vikings are not favored to beat the Philadelphia Eagles in their Week 6 matchup. With both teams sitting at 3-2 in tough divisions, it's a must-win game for each side. However, Minnesota is going to get the home victory.
Here are four reasons why.
4. Susceptible Eagles Secondary
This game should come down to running the ball. However, if the Vikings can't do that, then they should have plenty of opportunities to gash an ailing Eagles secondary. Injuries ravage Philadelphia's secondary, and that shouldn't change heading into Week 6's game. They are still a battered unit.
Though quarterback Kirk Cousins struggles against winning teams, he may not struggle against the Eagles secondary. That becomes especially true considering that he has Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs to pass to. Though the Vikings pass offense has been more miss than hit in 2019, expect them to burn a weak secondary for the second straight week.
3. The Pass-Rush
The Vikings can get to the quarterback. Through five weeks, they have 15 sacks, good for 10th in the NFL. According to Pro Football Reference, they are knocking down quarterbacks at a 9.2% rate, good for top-10 in the NFL. Their 25.1% pressure rate is above the league average. Yet, they aren't blitzing at a high rate (25.6%).
The Eagles have allowed eight sacks on the year to Carson Wentz. Not bad. However, he is throwing a bad pass 20.1% of the time, while also being hit 13 times on the season and receiving 19 pressures. Not awful numbers. However, Wentz struggles under pressure. According to PlayerProfiler, he has a 28.9% pressured completion rate, good for 24th.
If the Vikings can create pressure — which they can — Wentz may struggle. In turn, the Eagles will.
2. Dalvin Cook and the Running Attack
Sunday will be a heavyweight matchup between an elite run offense and a just as elite run defense. The Vikings rush-attack, led by Dalvin Cook, is averaging 166.4 yards per game, good for third in the NFL. On the other side of the ball, the Eagles have the best run defense in the NFL, allowing just 63 yards per outing.
The Vikings — with the help of Gary Kubiak — are a run-heavy team. The Eagles stop the run. If Minnesota is going to escape with a home win, the reason may be due to how well they rush the ball.
1. Rush Defense
Flip flop. The Vikings run offense is excellent, so is the Eagles run defense. Coincidentally, the Eagles also boast a high-level run offense; the Vikings are more than able to stop the run.
The Eagles are rushing the ball for an average of 111.8 yards per game. Jordan Howard has been a revelation for their offense, as he has rushed for four touchdowns on the year. Luckily, for Minnesota, the Vikings run defense is a top-ten unit, allowing 88.2 yards per game. They also have allowed just two touchdowns on the ground.
As previously stated, Sunday's game may come down to who rushes the ball better. Each defense is capable of bottling up high-profile rushing attacks.
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