Lines, Odds, Picks and Preview |
The Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans open up their 2011 NFL preseason schedules Saturday night and the series has been dominated by the road team. The Vikings are a perfect 4-0 against the Titans during exhibition action.
Saturday’s game will mark Minnesota Leslie Frazier’s first preseason game as a head coach. He is overseeing a roster of 38 new faces, including a new quarterback in former Redskins signal-caller Donovan McNabb.
The Vikings have been a dominant force in exhibition play, posting a 136-88-3 all-time record in 227 such contests. In fact, the franchise has finished the preseason undefeated six times.
Minnesota finished the 2010 season with a 6-10 SU record and 5-10-1 ATS mark, which will likely serve as former quarterback Brett Favre’s final year. It was a disappointing campaign due to the team losing in the NFC Championship games the previous year.
Getting points on the road last year was not a winning venture for the squad against the number, posting a 1-5-1 ATS mark as a underdog away from the Metrodome.
Tennessee earned an identical 6-10 SU mark last year, but proved to be a better club against the number, posting an even 8-8 ATS record. The Titans were 3-4 ATS as a home favorite in 2010.
First-year head coach Mike Munchak takes over for Jeff Fisher, who was the longest tenured coach in the NFL before his dismissal. The Titans will have 14 new members on their 19-man coaching staff.
Offensively, the team has said goodbye to quarterback Vince Young and signed veteran signal-caller Matt Hasselbeck, while also drafting former Washington Huskies player Jake Locker with the eighth overall pick in the NFL draft.
Running back Chris Johnson will not be on the field Saturday night, as he continues to be a holdout. He will be sorely missed due to leading the league in rushing yards since his arrival in town in 2008.
Many expect Johnson to be on the field for the regular-season opener, as he tries to become the eighth player in NFL history to begin his career with four consecutive 1,200-yard seasons.
From a betting perspective, Minnesota was 3-1 ATS during last year’s preseason, including a 28-7 road win in the opener as a 2.5-point underdog. Tennessee was 1-1 ATS at home during exhibition action in 2010, but picked up SU wins in both games.
At the time of this writing, Tennessee is currently listed as a 3-point home favorite and the total stands at 33 at Totalbets.com
