Vikings vs Steelers Preview: Predictions and Best Bets | NFL Week 4

Vikings vs Steelers Preview: Predictions and Best Bets | NFL Week 4

Back here on Spotlight, the NFL’s first ever game in Ireland is about to go down with the Vikings and the Steelers. Minnesota is 4-0. They are perfect in international games, although those wins all came in London. However, Aaron Rogers on the flip side is 0 and2 in his career in international games. And Aaron Rogers just one win shy of passing Brett Far for the most wins by a starting quarterback against the Vikings all time. So, there’s a lot on the line, but what is Aaron Rogers looking forward to most about this international trip? Take a listen. And I know this is a business trip, but what are you looking forward to about going over to Ireland? Guinness. Guinness on tap is my favorite beer in the world. Fair enough. And I don’t really drink beer. You had said a team that drinks together, rins together. Yeah. Is have you tried to incorporate that more? I’m not going to tell you that. Aaron Rogers keeping that close to the chest, right? All right. You know who else is in Dublin right now? It is our twotime Super Bowl champ with the Steelers, Brian McFaten, repping for Steelers Nation. Ryan Wilson, also a very prominent member of Steelers Nation joining us as well. So, it’s the NFL’s first game in Ireland. BMAC, we got to come to you first, my friend. I know Steelers fans travel so well. What’s the vibe there? Is there a lot of black and yellow? How is it going? 70 to 30 in favor of Pittsburgh with the fans. The streets are filled with Steeler fans. There’s so many Steeler apparel just walking around. I mean that you can purchase. So many fans wearing Steeler gear. I literally went to a Steelers pro shop today. So the NFL actually has an NFL pro shop and they have a Steelers pro shop. And when I tell you on both sides of the door, the line was the equivalent of a hundred yard football field with people trying to get in and waiting patiently to get in. And then when you got in because of so many fans being inside the shop, there’s nothing available except children’s size. I it’s been it’s been crazy. And the owner actually told me he said he’s never seen anything like this in his life in terms of owning that shop. So they’re really enjoying this opportunity to have an NFL game here. Now, you know what? If anybody can pull some strings and get some merch, it’s definitely Brian McFaten. So Ryan, give us your requests. Any merch that you want right here from BMAX. See what he can do. Just tell us on air so there’s a record. You want a shirt, you want a hat, like let them know. Yeah, Jacqueline, your family, uh, West Mifflin. I lived in Squirrel Hill back in the day. Bmac representing Pittsburgh. I’ll just tell you this story about BMAC, about how important and popular he is. We were at the Arizona Super Bowl and he was dressed like BMAC does. Like he’s a next level dressing, but it didn’t meet the dress code. He still got in. That’s how impressive BMAC is. So BMAC, give me an old school Casey Hampton 98 t-shirt. Early 2000s teams. There you go. Let’s do it. That’s a a high request. Okay. All right. We got it on record. It’s coming to you, Ryan. uh want to get into this matchup here because when we think Steeler football, we think this tough, hard-nosed defense, right? And through the first what, like two games of the season, that’s not really what we were seeing. And then there was this amazing defensive showing against the Patriots. Five takeaways. BMAC, how did they kind of build upon that in this game here on the defensive side of the ball? I think what we saw last week against the Patriots was the guys finally getting settled in. Now, if you look at the offseason regimen, there were a lot of new faces a part of the defense and not really participating in preseason play, I think kind of hurt the chemistry. Uh, but finally seeing the guys settle in and play the type of brand of football we thought they would play uh was encouraging to see. And moving forward, hopefully that uh uh element of creating turnovers can carry over in the game Sunday because they need so they need to be able to do that because that’s what we expect in terms of sacks, in terms of points allowed and takeaways. This is what we expect to see from the Pittsburgh Steelers defensively. And the two main catalyst, Ryan Jaclyn, that kind of jumpstarted their efforts were the the the experienced uh Steeler players. Cam Hayward lived up, had a great game. TJ Watt finally got home and got some sacks and put pressure on opposing on Drake London uh Drake May, I’m sorry. So, I think those two guys got to be the the the catalyst for the continuing success defensively against the Minnesota Vikings. No, that’s exactly right, BMAC. The concern is that you’re not going to get five takeaways each and every game. And the the Patriots in large part shot themselves in the foot with a lot of those silly turnovers. But your other point is an important one. Cam Hayward has to still continue to play like Cam Hayward even though he’s 36. He’s still one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL. Derek Harmon, their rookie, finally got a chance to get on the field after injury. Defensive lineman helped there. Keano Bittton needs to play a little better than he has thus far. And look, Carson W is not going to push the ball down the field. So, if you can stop the run, and that’s something the Steelers have struggled with in weeks one and two, and then force Carson Wentz to beat you, even with Jordan Addison back, that improves your chances considerably. The problem, of course, Jacqueline, is that uh the Steelers are winless against uh the Vikings on the road, and I think the Vikings are 4-0 when they go over to the UK to play football games. All right, so let’s get into the impact players to watch. Ryan, you kind of touched on it here, but you are looking at the run game for the Steelers with Jaylen Warren. Yeah, unfortunately Jaylen Warren’s questionable with a knee, but fingers crossed he plays because he is going to take a ton of pressure off of Aaron Rogers and Brian Flores bringing that pressure to try to pressure Aaron Rogers in much the way they’ve done over the first three weeks of the season because that Vikings defense is not something to be trifled with. Isaiah Rogers had two touchdown returns last week on defense. And if Jaylen Warren can man the running back position, by that I mean three, four, five yards per carry and then not force Aaron Rogers in a third and long situations, that is a great development for making this game longer and uh keeping that Vikings offense off the field. Uh the other thing to keep in mind is this. We don’t know who the number two wide receiver is because that person’s yet to step up. So again, the running game be on point. the offensive line starting with Brick Jones, the former first round pick, left tackle, has to play better. And if you do those things, you’ll give your chance yourself a good chance to win that football game. Well, for me, I’m going to transition to the defensive side in terms of my Steeler impact player to watch and I’m going with one of the best to ever do it and and TJ Watt. We finally saw TJ Watt emerge as I mentioned last week against the New England Patriots. And usually when he does good things, good things happen for the overall team side of things in terms of results. When he makes plays, the Steeler the Steelers win ball games. And yes, he’s a defensive-minded guy. He he he he’s not like an a skilled player on the offensive side, but his impact in terms of the overall standing point with the team is that they win ball games. So, if he can jumpst start some positivity in terms of putting pressure on Carson Wentz being uh uh impactful in the running game, everything else will follow suit. So that TJ Watt is my impact player to watch for for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Now guys, for the Viking side of things, we know JJ McCarthy is out. So that means it is Carson Wentz who is getting the nod. I’m sure Steelers fans just loved watching them drop 48 on the Bengals last week. So he’s also getting a new weapon in Jordan Addison who’s returning um after dealing with the suspension. So BMAC, how much of a boost is that going to be? Are you maybe nervous a little bit about Carson Wentz and Jordan Addison and that that connection if they haven’t been able to kind of practice that in a real game situation? Uh having Jordan Addison back is a significant boost because when you look at what he’s been able to do playing alongside Justin Jefferson, those two guys can do numbers. We’ve seen that. You know, I consider Jordan Addison to be a wide receiver one, but unfortunately he’s playing with the ultimate wide receiver one in Jettus. So if you’re Carson Wentz, you have to love the opportunity of having the full arsenal back in the saddle. Jordan Addison, Justin Jefferson, TJ Hawinson, because all three guys can really take over a ball game. And me personally, I know Carson Wentz is the backup guy, but I would much prefer the younger guy in JJ McCarthy, honestly, because when you think about Carson Wentz, he has that savvy experience that can really show up in the stat sheet. And we saw that last week in a very very efficient game from Carson Wentz. So the the the savvy ability to know where to go with the football. And the thing about Kevin O’Connell, he’s been able to do a lot of great things with guys like a Carson Wentz who has the experience but once upon a time was considered a guy as almost like a a forgotten player. But then when they get with KOC, they emerge to be a heck of a player for the organization and most importantly put them in positions to win ball games. I’m glad you mentioned that, BMAC, because Mike Tomlin earlier this week said the quiet part out loud last year’s game against the Colts. He said, “Look, be careful. Don’t knock Anthony Richardson out of the game because we do not want to face Joe Flacco.” Joe Flacco came in and the Colts won that game. And this is a similar situation. And you could argue that Carson Wentz is playing better than certainly Joe Flacco did last year. Uh, and it it’s a wild time to be alive, guys. We’re talking about Daniel Jones, M. Jones, Marcus Mara, Carson Wentz, all balling out like first round picks that they were at one time. So, it’s it’s sort of fun to watch. But, I think BMAC’s point is an important one because Jordan Addison is a wide receiver. One, he took over as a rookie when JJ was out with that hamstring injury and missed missed quite a bit of time. You wouldn’t have known it to watch the way Jordan Addison was playing. So to get both those guys back, to get the run game going with Jordan Mason, that dominant offensive line along with that really good defense, uh those are a lot of problems to solve uh in another country if you’re the Pittsburgh Steelers. Yeah, to your point, Ryan, it feels like we’re living in some sort of simulation with like Carson Wentz, Mariota, M. Jones, all getting the start in balling out. All right, let’s get to the Vikings impact player to watch, Ryan Wilson. Who is it for you? I’m gonna go with Christian Daraw, the left tackle, who missed time last year, of course, with that injury, had the ACL. And I mentioned him for a couple reasons. Number one, he’s one of the best left tackles in the league and incredibly important to the offensive line. But BMAC mentioned TJ Watt. Guess what teams do through three weeks? They are running away from TJ Watt, which means typically to the left side of the offense. That’s where Christian Darasaw is. So if they get the running game going with Jordan Mason to the left side away from TJ Watt and Darasaw is dominating which is what he has done thus far when he’s been on the field that could make for another long afternoon for the Steelers. So Christian Darasaw is my player to watch because he is so incredibly important to what they do even though we don’t spend a lot of time talking about offensive lineman. For me I’m going with Jordan Mason. Here’s why. He provides a different element to their offense in the running game. He’s bigger than Aaron Jones. He leans on defenders and when he gets going it’s hard to stop. just ask the Cincinnati Bengals. And then when you look at this matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers, week one, Reese Hall went off. Week two, Kenneth Walker didn’t only just walk, but he ran through the Steelers defense. So, if you’re Jordan Mason, there has to be an opportunity mentally that you believe you can have similar like success that we saw from guys like Bree Hall and Kenneth Walker in the running game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. All right, the time has come for a game pick. The Steelers two and a half point dogs in Dublin. BMAC, I will give you first word. Which way are you going? And I think I know. Of course, you know, being an underdog, you don’t need points. This is a moneyline play for me. I have the Pittsburgh Steelers winning by four. 16 to 12, I think, is going to be a lowscoring game. Brian Flores defense is going to be feisty. The same could be safe for Terrell Austin and his defensive efforts. Give me 1612 in favor of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Well, first of all, producer James didn’t tell me I’d be doing the sit with my people Jacqueline and Bmac. uh Pittsburgh fans uh in their own rights. So, I went with the Vikings just because the Vikings have been so good on the road, but I appreciate BMAC’s enthusiasm. I hope he’s right. I think it’s going to be a lowscoring affair and uh fingers crossed. Hope isn’t a plan, but I’m hoping the Steelers find a way to do this. All right, Hudday Nation. I apologize. I love y’all. My dad is from West Mifflin, so that is why Ryan Wilson is saying that. Be back. Enjoy your time, my friend. I cannot wait to follow along on social media with all Steelers Nation in Dublin. Go ahead. If it’s possible for me to get some Guinness ship to you guys, I definitely will. So, I’mma see I’mma see what’s going on. I’m over I’m at actually at the bar, right? Um BMAC, we’re going to we’re going to hold you up on that promise, my friend. We We have the receipt, so we will be looking forward to a package from the bar. You are at some nice Guinness from the bar. Bmac, enjoy your time. Ryan Wilson, get back to the bar. Yeah, I know, right? Fingers crossed for the Steelers. Vikings, Steelers. It is all going down very early. And what do you know? Look at the crew. AP Kyle Long, Amanda Gara, Matt Ryan. Make sure you stream in to the NFL today plus Sunday 10:00 a.m. Eastern before every game. They’re in Kansas City for Ravens Chiefs. And um I heard Kyle Long is doing some sort of barbecue eating challenge. Something like that is on the docket. So make sure you tune in. You can stream it on Paramount Plus as well.

Bryant McFadden and Ryan Wilson join CBS Sports HQ to preview the NFL International Game in Ireland between the Vikings and Steelers.

(0:00:00) International game set in Dublin
(0:03:09) Steelers defense looks to build off last week’s performance
(0:05:16) Steelers impact player to watch
(0:07:10) Carson Wentz set to start again
(0:07:10) Jordan Addison returns from suspension
(0:09:49) Vikings impact player to watch
(0:11:05) Game Predictions

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