Vikings Titans Betting – Vikings, Titans Kickoff Preseason With Similar Outlooks
One of the biggest factors in the success for a team post lockout will be how quickly they can adapt and prepare for a new season with a shortened timeline to get everything done, something that some teams will have a more difficult time to do than others. With a new head coach, new quarterback, and several key new sports betting pieces, the Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans are both in the same category as teams with a ton of talent but little time to put it all together, beginning this weekend when they face eachother in week one of the 2011 NFL preseason.
- Minnesota Vikings @ Tennessee Titans
- Saturday August 13, 2011 – 8:00 PM ET
- LP Field, Nashville, Tennessee
NFL Betting Lines: Tennessee Titans – 3
While the Vikings landed Donovan McNabb after years of speculation that he would eventually play there, the Titans went off the charts to acquire former Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. Both quarterbacks are in similar situations, as they rush to learn the new offenses while tutoring a pair of young franchise quarterbacks on each team.
NFL Betting Preview: Minnesota Vikings
McNabb was rumored to be on his way to Minnesota since even before Brett Favre’s first season there, and now that he is finally in purple he will have his work cut out for him. McNabb will start in Thursday’s game against the Titans, and while he will need to impress coaches with his own play, management is also looking for him to have a positive impact on rookie Christian Ponder, who will make his NFL preseason debut. Who emerges for those two quarterbacks to throw to will be a key storyline after the team lost Sidney Rice in the offseason, while the defensive secondary continues to search for the right combination.
NFL Betting Preview: Tennessee Titans
The situation is almost identical to McNabb’s for Hasselbeck, who comes over from the Seahawks looking to start for the next couple of seasons before making way for Jake Locker to take over. Unlike McNabb though, Hasselbeck is learning a completely new offense and the learning curve could be steep. The Titans don’t have as many weapons at wide receiver either which complicates things even more, so unless the running game can get going this will be a major work in progress in Tennessee. The talent is there on the defensive side of the ball, but again here there are still several holes to fill.
NFL Betting Preview: Outlook & Pick
While the Titans have made some good moves this offseason, they are not yet as ready for game action as Minnesota is, even though the Vikings do open their exhibition schedule on the road. The Vikings will allow Ponder to really work things out on the field against a Tennessee defense with holes in its pass rush and secondary, and it will be interesting to see how both rookie quarterbacks fare in their first sports betting bonus preseason action.
NFL Betting Pick: Minnesota Vikings + 3
