Ali Siddiqui’s MIN-HOU Prediction + Flashback

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The Minnesota Vikings and the Houston Texans are set to face off this Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Ali Siddiqui’s MIN-HOU Prediction + Flashback

Both teams are 2-0. Minnesota is coming off an upset 23-17 win at home against the San Francisco 49ers, while Houston is coming off a 19-13 win over the Chicago Bears. Minnesota leads the all-time series 5-0, but this Houston team is much different than in most years. The last time these two teams faced each other was in 2020 at NRG Stadium.

Kirk Cousins went 16/22 for 260 yards and a touchdown. Dalvin Cook rushed for 130 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. Adam Thielen caught eight passes for 114 yards and a touchdown. Justin Jefferson caught four passes for 103 yards.

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On defense, Eric Kendricks had a game-high 12 tackles. Yannick Ngakoue had two sacks. Minnesota won 31-23, improving to 1-3 on the season. They finished 7-9. Houston fell to 0-4 with the loss finished at 4-12.

“It definitely feels good to win a football game, to help the confidence of our team, to get us back in rhythm of knowing we can go out there and win the football game if we play as a whole in each phase of the game,” Cook said.

For Houston, Deshaun Watson went 20/33 for 300 yards and two touchdowns. David Johnson rushed for 63 yards on 16 carries. Will Fuller caught six passes for 108 yards and a touchdown. Zach Cunnigham recorded a team-high 10 tackles. Whitney Mercilus recorded two sacks.

Last season, Houston went 10-7 and could very well be in Super Bowl contention the rest of the way. Although their wins have not been very impressive, they are still wins, and it is still very early. C.J. Stroud and Nico Collins are among the top young stars in the game.

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This will be a very good game, especially since it will be the first time Stefon Diggs and Danielle Hunter will face their former teams in Minnesota. Diggs faced them two years ago at Buffalo, and Hunter left this past offseason as a free agent.

Both were drafted by Minnesota in 2015. Diggs played for five seasons, and Hunter played for nine. Fans will be very anxious to see both of them play against their favorite team.

Hunter will very likely get a warm reception from the fans. What will it be like for Diggs? While fans will never forget the 2017 Minneapolis Miracle, he also did not end his time in Minnesota on the best terms.

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Heading into the season, this looked like one of Minnesota’s toughest games on the schedule. It still could be and likely will be. This game could very well go either way. If Minnesota wins this game, the outlook the rest of the way will look much better than many originally expected. Last week, they beat a very good team. This week, they play another very good team.

Brian Flores’ defense has looked very good after two games. Can they keep it up against Stroud, Diggs, Collins, and Joe Mixon? It will be a big test. Sam Darnold has also looked good so far. How he plays this Sunday will also be very critical.

Prediction: Vikings win 24-20

Vikings vs. Texans Week 4 Highlights | NFL 2020 (youtube.com)