Favre missed most of training camp again this year while debating retirement, and it caught up to him in a 14-9 loss to the defending Super Bowl champion Saints. The Vikings managed to cover the spread in that game and are favored in this spot at -5.5 on the current pro football line, but Favre will need to have figured out who to throw the ball to by the time they host the Dolphins. He looked far from sharp vs. New Orleans, connecting on 15 of 27 passes for 171 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
The big question now revolves around whether or not the time off gave Favre the opportunity to improve his play and bond with his receivers or kept him rusty. One thing that hurt Minnesota in the season opener is that head coach Brad Childress seemed to give up on the ground game in the second half against the Saints, leaving running back Adrian Peterson to finish with 19 carries for 87 yards after an impressive first half.
The Vikings also definitely missed the presence of injured wide receiver Sidney Rice (hip surgery), as new addition Greg Camarillo and Percy Harvin only had one catch apiece. Harvin was suffering from migraine headaches in the preseason but the latest ailment he is dealing with is a hip injury, although he is expected to play against Miami.
The Dolphins are coming off a 15-10 victory at Buffalo last Sunday in which they held the Bills to a league-low 166 yards and nine first downs. Offensively, they picked up where they left off last year with their powerful rushing attack of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams, who totaled 127 yards and a touchdown between them.
Miami quarterback Chad Henne completed 21 of 34 passes for 182 yards with no interceptions against Buffalo but also failed to throw for a touchdown. New wide receiver Brandon Marshall enjoyed moderate success in his debut with the Dolphins, making eight catches for 53 yards though he was targeted 13 times by Henne. They dominated time of possession with the Bills, holding the ball for nearly 37 minutes.
With the running games again expected to take center stage at the Metrodome, Miami and Minnesota could be on pace for a low-scoring affair. The UNDER is 10-4 in the last 14 road games for the Dolphins and 8-3 in the last 11 games overall for the Vikings, who have dropped six of the 10 all-time meetings. We have released 5 NFL spread picks for the Sunday card, one of which is our 20 unit AFC East game of the year, should be a profitable day so dont miss out.
