Sportbet Sunday Football

At this point of the NFL season many games start to lose their luster because the playoff scenario has already been determined for so many games.  But, the match-up between the Redskins and the Vikings is turning into the most important game of the season for these squads.  The winner of this game will find themselves in the drivers’ seat for the final Wildcard playoff spot in the tight NFC race, with just one game remaining in the regular season. 

The Washington Redskins had thought their season was over for sure when emerging quarterback Jason Campbell went down with a season ending injury.  They had to resort to backup Todd Collins who hadn’t started a game since 1997.  He should be rewarded for sticking around the league that long without playing, but he should be doubly rewarded with the way he has played since stepping in.  In the two games he’s seen action he has thrown for two touchdowns and no interceptions while compiling a decent quarterback rating of 95.6 percent.  He has also show an ability to finish important game deciding drives, something Campbell had been struggling with all year.  Collins has been a breath of fresh air for fans of the Redskins.  Despite not playing in years, he has shown a grasp of the offense you would expect from a ten year starter.

The Vikings were not expected to play this way at the beginning of the season, but then they realized they had one of the biggest playmakers to come into the league in years on their team.  Adrian Peterson has had a monster year, despite missing two games to injury early in the season.  Peterson has ran for exactly 1200 yards this year, while averaging an amazing 6.1 yards per carry.  Peterson had a goal of 1800 yards for the season, but while that goal appears to be out of reach, he will still likely be the NFL league leader at the end of the season.  He has scampered to the end zone 11 times, ten on the ground, and one from a pass.  Earlier in the season Peterson broke the all-time rushing record for a game when he ran for 296 yards against the San Diego Chargers.  I’m not sure if that was on his lists of accomplishments, but I’m sure he’s happy to have it anyway.  The Vikings have won five out of their last six games, making them one of the hottest teams in the NFL.

This is a very tough game to predict, with so much on the line.  Since they are playing in Minnesota, and they’ve been playing so well, I think I might favor them by just a couple of points.  The Redskins defense allows them to stay in almost every game, so one play here or there could change the way this game goes, but for now, I’ll go with the purple and gold.