The Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions meet Sunday in NFL action from Ford Field. Here’s a Lions vs Vikings prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Lions vs Vikings pick.
Minnesota Vikings Betting Preview
The Vikings’ season opened with a rivalry win over the Chicago Bears, then came a loss to the Atlanta Falcons ahead of another win versus the Cincinnati Bengals. Minnesota would then lose a close one versus the Pittsburgh Steelers before beating the Cleveland Browns 21-17. Game six was another loss, this time 28-22 versus the Philadelphia Eagles at home. In that one the Vikings posted 387 total yards with two interceptions, 89 rush yards and 21 first downs. The defense gave up just 3-of-10 on third downs and 13 first downs total but the team couldn’t find a way to pull out the home victory against the defending Super Bowl champs.
In their latest outing last Thursday versus the Los Angeles Chargers, the Vikings took yet another loss. Minnesota was down 21-3 by the end of the first half and gave up points in every quarter along the way to a 37-10 road loss. QB Carson Wentz was 15-of-27 for 144 yards, one TD and one pick while Zavier Scott led an anemic rush with two totes for 16 yards. Justin Jefferson added seven catches for 74 yards as the team’s leading receiver, while Jordan Addison caught the TD among his three grabs for 26 yards.
Detroit Lions Betting Preview
Over on the Lions’ side, they opened up the season with a 27-13 road loss versus their longtime rival Green Bay Packers but soon righted the ship with four straight wins. Those victories came courtesy of the Chicago Bears, Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals. Detroit fell in game six versus the Kansas City Chiefs 30-17 on the road, though. In that one the Lions mustered just 98 rush yards and 5-of-11 on third-down tries. The defense gave up 355 yards on the other side with 4-of-10 on third downs and no takeaways in the losing effort as well.
In their most recent outing on October 20 at home versus the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Lions bagged their fifth win of the season. Detroit posted a touchdown in each of the first three quarters along the way to a 24-9 result. QB Jared Goff was 20-of-29 for 241 yards, one TD and one pick while leading rusher Jahmyr Gibbs had 17 rushes for 136 yards and two scores of his own. Tops in receiving during the home victory on a Monday evening was Amon-Ra St. Brown with six grabs for 86 yards and a score.
Minnesota Vikings @ Detroit Lions Betting Trends: Week 9
Why the Detroit Lions will win
- The Lions have won 11 of their last 12 home games against NFC North opponents.
- The Vikings have lost each of their last four games at Ford Field.
- The Lions have covered the spread in each of their last nine games against the Vikings.
- The Vikings have failed to cover the spread in each of their last five games at Ford Field.
- The Lions have won the first quarter in each of their last seven home games against NFC opponents.
- The Lions have won the first half in 14 of their last 15 Sunday games against teams that held a losing record.
- The Lions have scored the first touchdown in each of their last seven home games against NFC opponents.
Why the Minnesota Vikings will win
- The Vikings have won each of their last four Week 9 games against NFC opponents.
- The Lions have lost three of their last four home games following a home win.
- The Lions have failed to cover the spread in each of their last four home games following a home win.
- The Vikings have covered the spread in four of their last five Week 9 games.
- The Vikings have won the first quarter in each of their last four road games against the Lions following a road loss.
- The Vikings have won the first half in eight of their last nine Week 9 games against the Lions.
- The Vikings have scored the first touchdown in four of their last five Week 9 games.
Total Points Facts
- Each of the Vikings’ last five games have gone OVER the total points line.
- Six of the last seven games between the Vikings and Lions have gone OVER the total points line.
- Three of the last four games between teams from the same division have gone OVER the total points line.
Detroit Lions Player Prop Facts
- Jared Goff has recorded 296+ passing yards in four of his five previous home appearances against the Vikings.
- Jahmyr Gibbs has scored two or more touchdowns in three of the Lions’ last four games against the Vikings.
- Jahmyr Gibbs has scored at least one touchdown in each of the Lions’ last seven home games.
- David Montgomery has recorded 56+ rushing and receiving yards in each of his last 10 November appearances.
- Kalif Raymond has recorded 11+ receiving yards in each of his last nine appearances against NFC North opponents.
- David Montgomery has recorded 46+ rushing yards in each of his six previous November appearances at Ford Field.
- Jahmyr Gibbs has scored the first touchdown in three of the Lions’ last four games against NFC North opponents.
- Jared Goff has recorded 25+ completions in four of his five previous home appearances against the Vikings.
- Heading into Week 9, Amon-Ra St. Brown ranks T1st in the NFL in receiving touchdowns (7) this season.
Minnesota Vikings Player Prop Facts
- Carson Wentz has recorded 238+ passing yards in each of his three previous appearances against the Lions.
- T.J. Hockenson has scored the last touchdown in three of his last four November appearances against NFC North opponents.
- Aaron Jones has scored a touchdown in each of his last four November appearances against NFC opponents.
- Aaron Jones has recorded 45+ rushing and receiving yards in each of his last 22 road appearances against NFC opponents.
- Adam Thielen has recorded 21+ receiving yards in each of his last 20 November appearances against NFC opponents.
- Aaron Jones has recorded 35+ rushing yards in each of his last 13 Sunday road appearances.
- Carson Wentz has recorded 25+ completions in each of the Vikings’ last three Sunday games.
- Heading into Week 9, Will Reichard has recorded the equal-most made field goals in a single game this season (5 vs Eagles, Week 7).
Matchup/League Facts
- Lions – two different players have recorded 80+ rushing yards in a game this season – equal-most in the NFL, heading into Week 9.
- Lions – two different players have recorded 90+ rushing yards in a game this season – equal-most in the NFL, heading into Week 9.
- Vikings – three different players have recorded 2.0 sacks or more in a game this season – equal-most in the NFL, heading into Week 9.
- Heading into Week 9, the Vikings have recorded the largest margin of victory in the NFL this season (38-points vs Cincinnati on September 21, 2025).
Lions vs Vikings Prediction
I’m going to stay with the Lions. Detroit did pretty well in their latest outing versus a good Tampa Bay team. In that one the Lions bagged 379 total yards and 5.8 yards per play, but there’s plenty to clean up. The 3-of-13 on third downs and two turnovers didn’t help matters. That said, on defense Detroit was solid with just 15 first downs and 4-of-16 on third downs allowed along with two takeaways. Detroit has 24 or more points in all five of their wins—and 34 or more in four of those—so getting to the scoreboard early should be a priority.
As for the Vikes, they notched a pretty rough effort last Thursday versus the Chargers. In that one Minnesota had just 164 total yards, 12 first downs, 3.5 yards per play and 3-of-11 on third-down tries. The defense gave up 9-of-13 on third downs along with 29 first downs. Minnesota isn’t scoring well lately either; they’ve been at 22 points or below in four straight outings.