Vikings vs Lions Game Preview: Biggest Storylines, Players to Watch & Picks to Win ✅ | NFL Week 9

Vikings vs Lions Game Preview: Biggest Storylines, Players to Watch & Picks to Win ✅ | NFL Week 9

Vikings at Lions this Sunday. The Lions great season. Vikings, not so much. But guess what? This guy, he’s going to provide a a boost. QB JJ McCarthy, he has been out six weeks with that high ankle sprain, but he is poised to return Sunday and make his third NFL start. He will do so in Detroit. That’s got to get Vikings fans excited after a tough season for them. All right, we welcome back in our NFL insiders, Tyler Sullivan and JP Aosta. McCarthy says he’s feeling amazing, that he’s ready to go. How much of an impact will he make? Because they’re hopeful that this is the start of something special for the Vikings with McCarthy at the helm. Tyler, what do you think? Yeah, I have my doubts that this will be something special for 2025. Now, this is a player that Kevin Oonnell has a long-term view on. So, this isn’t just for week nine in the NFL in 2025. This is for 2026, 2027, and hopefully beyond. And so, the reason why I’m a little bit apprehensive to say, okay, this is Splash. You’re going to get your QB1 for week one back into the fold because he hasn’t looked great when he was that QB1 for the Minnesota Vikings to begin the season. He was really that fourth quarter comeback against the Chicago Bears. And everything else around that was a little bit uneasy. More turnovers than total touchdowns in his two starts. He was throwing for 152 passing yards per game. It’s not like this was a prolific JJ McCarthy that we unfortunately saw go down with a high ankle sprain to the point where I wrote on cbsports.com like was this a relative soft benching for him. I mean, you have Carson Wentz who they described to be as banged up as humanly possible over the last few weeks and you have a guy like JJ McCarthy practicing on a limited basis. So, what does that tell us to a degree? So, I’m a little concerned about what JJ McCarthy is going to look like once he gets under center. Okay. So, we’re excited to watch McCarthy, even though you’re concerned about what he’s going to look like. We got to ask you about the other Vikings player to watch with his W, which is wide receiver Jordan Addison since returning from his suspension. He’s had a productive season, very reliable, but what do we need to watch for this Sunday from him, Tyler? Specifically, look for him in the red area. He has been someone that the Minnesota Vikings have really turned to when we get into scoring position. He has more red zone targets than Justin Jefferson. Of course, some of that has to go with how coverages play against Justin Jefferson and how that helps free up Jordan Addison, but it makes no mistake about it. He is someone that they like to scheme up in the red area. And this is a good matchup for him to find the red zone. The Detroit Lions, believe it or not, have allowed the second most receiving touchdowns to wide receivers in the NFL, only looking up to the Dallas Cowboys. And anytime your defense is talked about in the same breath as the Dallas Cowboys, not necessarily a good thing. So, look for Jordan Anderson to possibly get in the red zone this weekend. I love the Jordan Impact player shout. I’m going to go with defensive tackle Jaylen Redmond. He’s been incredibly efficient on pass rush snaps. He has a 13.6% 6% pressure rate on only 118 pass rush snaps. And if you’re going to beat this Detroit Lions offense, you have to win up the middle of the offensive line where they’re most inexperienced. The Vikings need somebody on that defensive line to really step up to really make an impact as a pass rusher. And Jaylen Redmond’s quickness and his burst on the inside of the line of scrimmage. We really might give Jared G some problems and they’re going to need him, especially if Andrew Vanle isn’t 100%. All right, JP, we know the Lions have that momentum sitting at 5-2 and fresh off the by-week. Are they on that solid trajectory and another path for a deep playoff run? What do you think when you look at the rest of their schedule? I think they’re on track for another deep playoff run because they’ve weathered the storm of injuries once again. It really shows how much of a culture Dan Campbell has built, how well the coordinators have called the plays, John Morton on the offensive side of the ball, then Kelvin Shepard on the defense, and you’re just getting impact plays from guys that you didn’t expect it from. Amique Robertson has really stepped into this role as their CB1 when DJ Re and Terry Arnold have been out. Aiden Hudson has played well. You’ve gotten a lot of good play from Jack Campbell in the middle of that defense. But the offense has really started to figure it out since that week one loss against the Packers. And it’s because that offensive line is jelled well. You’ve seen this offensive line play a lot better, especially when it comes to Christian Mahogany at left guard, Tate Rattlage at right guard. And when things start to get a little hairy for the Lions, when things start to get a little scary offensively, they lean on Rattlage and Pane Su running the football. And because of that, they just have too many answers. So, I think that they’re going to be well rested. They’re going to get a lot of guys back, and I think they’re prep preparing for a deep playoff run. All right, the Lions Impact player to watch, that would be running back Jir Gibbs. He’s shown off his explosiveness this season and the Lions have been utilizing him well this year resulting in his solid production. But why is he the impact player this week for you Tyler? Yeah, real bold play by me. Jir Gibbs pretty good at football. But I do think that this is a matchup where he actually explodes to Jir Gibbs will win you a week in fantasy. He will be one of the highest rushers in the NFL. Like that’s what I think we’re on the precipice here with Jir Gibbs. as you referenced, he’s been his usage is up as opposed to years past. It’s no longer it feels like a 50/50 split between him and David Montgomery. Probably more like 6040 in this matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. They’re 25th in the NFL and opposing rushing EPA. Bottom half of the NFL, they just let Videl the Chargers go for a buck 17 and a touchdown last week. They had Quincant Chan Junkkins go for over a 100red yards in London not too long ago. They did keep Saquon Barkley relatively in check, but that might speak a little bit more to the Philadelphia Eagles in that game. I think this is a smash spot for Jir Gibbs to once again take over out of the backfield. I’m once again going to the defensive line. I got to give respect to the big boys. I’m going with Alen McNeel, defensive tackle for the Detroit Lions. The Vikings offensive line truly has not played up to its form in 2024. It’s because a lot of guys have been injured at both tackle spots, both guard spots. And since Ali McNeel has come back, the numbers don’t look gay, but you can tell when he plays the force that he plays with, the attention that the offensive line has to devote to McNeel, that frees up Aiden Hudson, that frees up other guys like Alcad Muhammad on the defensive line. So, I think if Alen McNeel can win up the middle of that offensive line, if you can really give them problems, it’ll really start to open up everything else for the Detroit defense. Because if you can win with pass rush, you can do whatever you need on a on the back end. All right, that’s my favorite part. Give me your predictions for this game. I think I know what both of you are going to say. I know I’m taking the Lions. Seems like a foregone conclusion in my mind with this matchup, but what do you say, guys? We’ll start with Tyler first. Yeah, I’m taking the Lions here. The big thing for me is this offense at Fordfield is absolutely prolific. One of highscoring offenses at home in the NFL. And when I compare that to my concerns about the Minnesota Vikings offense with JJ McCarthy, I just have a question of whether or not they’re going to be able to keep up. So for me, it’s a set and forget. Lay the points here. Go with the Detroit Lions. I’m also picking the Lions here, but I think it’s more because the offensive and defensive lines for the Vikings have not been up to par this season. If you’re going to start a rookie quarterback, essentially a rookie quarterback in JJ McCarthy, you have to be good on the lines of scrimmage. and the Vikings just haven’t, which doesn’t match up well with the Detroit offense and defensive line that has played really well in the last few weeks. I just think if things start to get hairy, they’re going to run the ball down their throats and I think Detroit’s going to run away with this one. There you go. We got the predictions, guys. Thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate the time and the insight. Take a look at the odds to win the NFC North. Of course, the Packers right there at the top, but the Lions not far behind. Not surprising. We’ll be right back.

Tyler Sullivan and J.P. Acosta join CBS Sports HQ Spotlight to preview the Week 9 matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions.

[00:00:00] J.J. McCarthy is ‘ready to go’
[00:02:01] Vikings Impact Player to Watch
[00:03:33] Lions fresh off bye week
[00:04:45] Lions Impact Player to Watch
[00:06:38] Picks to Win

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