Category: Minnesota Vikings news

Vikings vs. Broncos Week 11 broadcast info

This is Minnesota’s last game before its Week 12 bye.

The 7-3 Vikings host the 3-6 Broncos in Week 11 of the NFL season at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

Kickoff is set for noon CT on Nov. 17.

For those streaming, try fuboTV. You can get started here for free.

The game will air on CBS (note: not FOX). Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon and Jay Feely will be on the call.

For those listening locally, tune into 100.3 KFAN-FM. Paul Allen, Pete Bercich, Greg Coleman and Ben Leber will be on the call.

This is Minnesota’s last game before its Week 12 bye.

The Vikings are 7-7 all-time against the Broncos, but have lost their last three games. They go into this game as 10.5-point favorites.

Vikings open as big favorites vs. Broncos

The Vikings are 7-7 all-time against the Broncos.

The 7-3 Vikings host the 3-6 Broncos in Week 11 of the NFL season.

Per BetMGM, the Vikings have opened as 10.5-point favorites in the game. A bet on the Vikings to cover pays at -110, while a bet on the Broncos to cover also pays at -110.

A money line bet on the Vikings pays at -500, while a money line bet on the Broncos pays at +375.

The over/under for the game is 39.5. The over pays at -115, while the under pays at -106.

The Vikings are 7-7 all-time against the Broncos. Denver has won the last three games between the two teams, most recntly in 2015 when the Broncos won 23-20 in Denver behind 103 rushing yards on just 11 attempts from Ronnie Hillman.

The Vikings have a bye in Week 12.

To round out the NFC North, the

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Vikings move up spot in power rankings

The Vikings find themselves just a half-game back from a first-round bye in the NFC.

After their 28-24 win over the Cowboys on Sunday night, the Minnesota Vikings improved to 7-3 on the season.

The win bumped them up from eighth to seventh in USA TODAY’s Week 10 power rankings.

It was a big win for the Vikings, and Kirk Cousins, on primetime against a winning team.

The Vikings find themselves just a half game back from a first-round bye in the NFC.

To round out the NFC North, the Packers rank sixth, the Bears rank 21st and the Lions rank 27th.

In Week 11, the Vikings host the 3-6 Broncos. The Broncos rank 25th in the power rankings.

It sounds like Vikings CB Trae Waynes will be back vs. Broncos

The Vikings starting cornerback was held out of Sunday night’s game with an ankle injury.

The Vikings were without cornerback Trae Waynes (ankle) in Week 10 against the Cowboys in Dallas.

Minnesota won, but did have some trouble with its pass defense.

Waynes, who by no means has been great this season, is expected to be back on Sunday against the Broncos at U.S. Bank Stadium.

“Yeah, I think we will (have him back),” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said Monday.

The Vikings have two other injuries lingering as well. Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen (hamstring) and nose tackle Linval Joseph (knee) both missed Sunday’s game against the Cowboys.

We don’t have a great feel on their availability quite yet, but will have a better idea this week when practices start.

It’s worth noting that the Vikings have a bye in Week 12, so if Thielen and Joseph aren’t ready to go in Week 11, they’ll have two weeks off before the team takes on the Seahawks in Week 13.

Vikings TE Kyle Rudolph named to Pro Football Focus Team of the Week

The tight end had two touchdowns in the team’s 28-24 win over the Cowboys on Sunday night.

Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph has been less involved as a receiver this season, but he made the most of his opportunities in Week 10 against the Cowboys in Dallas.

Rudolph caught four passes for 14 yards, scoring on two of the catches. His first touchdown was insane.

The veteran tight end finished with a Pro Football Focus grade of 86.8 on the week, landing him a spot on PFF’s Team of the Week.

No other Viking made the team from their 28-24 primetime win.

Rudolph has been more of a blocking tight end this season, and it shows his professionalism that he hasn’t really complained about it.

On the season, Rudolph has 24 catches on 30 targets for 184 yards and four touchdowns. That puts him on pace for 38 catches for 294 yards and six touchdowns. Those aren’t the numbers you’d expect from Rudolph, but he’s doing more than what’s simply on the box score.

Mike Zimmer is the best in Vikings locker room speech

After the team’s win over the Cowboys, the Vikings coach put his comedian hat on.

The Vikings beat the Cowboys, 28-24 on Sunday night, earning a huge statement win over another playoff-caliber team.

The win was important for the Vikings, who moved to 8-3.

It was also special for Vikings coach Mike Zimmer who was with the Cowboys from 1994-2006.

Zimmer had his postgame locker room speech and as you’d expect from Zimmer, there were a few swear words. But he also dropped the ultimate dad joke, telling the team he would see them on Monday morning for practice.

Then, like a true comedian, he paused. He was just kidding!

Check out it. This team clearly respects Zimmer, and Zimmer clearly loves his players. Good stuff all around.

FiveThirtyEight gives Vikings 87 percent chance to make playoffs

The Vikings are coming off an impressive 28-24 road win over the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football.

The Vikings had themselves a statement win on Sunday night against the Cowboys in Dallas, winning 28-24.

That win moved the Vikings to 7-3 and in pretty good position for the postseason.

Per FiveThirtyEight, the Vikings have an 87 percent chance to make the postseason. Minnesota has a 34 percent chance to win the NFC North, a 25 percent chance to get a first-round bye and a (wait for it . . . ) seven percent chance to win the Super Bowl.

Up next for the Vikings are the 3-6 Denver Broncos in Week 11 at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings should win that game and move to 8-3 going into their Week 12 bye week.

This is how the rest of Minnesota’s schedule shakes out:

  • Week 13 at Seattle
  • Week 14 vs. Detroit
  • Week 15 at Chargers
  • Week 16 vs. Packers
  • Week 17 vs. Bears

There is plenty to like about how the Vikings are playing right now, but there’s still a lot of football to be played. We’ll see if they can keep it going.

Looking ahead to Vikings vs. Broncos in Week 11

The Vikings should be able to keep their momentum rolling in Week 11 against an underperforming Broncos team.

Denver Broncos (3-6) at Minnesota Vikings (7-3)

Sunday, November 17, 1 PM ET, U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN

Broncos’ keys to victory: Vic Fangio’s defense has done its part, ranking in the top 10 in both yards and points allowed. If Denver can get anything that resembles an offense clicking, that could be enough to steal a game from the up-and-down Vikings. That’s pretty unlikely, though. Denver has scored more than 20 points just twice this season. The good news, however, is that the Broncos were able to do it in their last game, with QB Brandon Allen at the helm. It actually probably works against the Vikings that QB Joe Flacco (neck) won’t play in this game.  

Vikings’ to victory: If the Vikings just play their game, they should be just fine. That means controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. RB Dalvin Cook is one of the best running backs in the NFL, but a big question mark continues to be overall team health. The Vikings could really use WR Adam Thielen, who missed two of the past three games with a hamstring injury. The offense gets stagnant without him, as there just aren’t many receiving weapons for QB Kirk Cousins outside of WR Stefon Diggs.

Matchup to watch: Vikings DE Danielle Hunter vs. Broncos QB Brandon Allen. I would expect Vikings coach Mike Zimmer to throw a lot at Allen. There will be plenty of blitzes to keep Allen on his toes — or on his back. What makes Zimmer’s blitzes so effective is that he has two Pro Bowl-caliber defensive ends in Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen. There’s a good chance Hunter will have his second-straight season with 10 or more sacks before this game is over. Last season, he finished with a career-high 14.5.

Who wins? It will be difficult for the Broncos to slow down the Vikings’ offense, and it seems highly unlikely the Broncos will be able to put up points against Zimmer’s stingy defense. The Vikings should be plenty hungry considering they’re fighting for playoff positioning. Vikings 31, Broncos 13