Kirk Cousins in primetime has become an automatic fade for me, but even if this was at 4 p.m. in Minnesota, I would take the Seahawks by a touchdown. The Vikings are not as bad as their record indicates, but desperation is not usually the best formula against a composed, experienced team like the Seahawks. Russell Wilson is in the midst of an MVP season, he has a ton of offense weapons, and Seattle’s defense should be stout enough against the run to limit Minnesota’s best weapon in Dalvin Cook. It’ll be Russ and the Seahawks who are actually cooking on Sunday night.

There's no looking past how poorly the Seahawks' defense has played, but the difference between Russell Wilson in prime time and Kirk Cousins in prime time is massive. Russ seems to have an 'MVP or bust' mentality this season, and though Seattle is bound to give up some points, the Vikings' D isn't looking great either. It will be tough for Minnesota to stay within a TD. Lay the points.

With wet and somewhat windy conditions expected for this matchup, I'm going to get in on the Under for this game, even after it's already dropped a couple points on Sunday. Even against what's been a poor Seahawks pass defense, I'm not sure Kirk Cousins was equipped to light up the scoreboard anyway, and I sure don't expect him to if he has to battle adverse conditions as well. The Seahawks offense has been nearly impossible to contain, but the poor weather may give Pete Carroll an excuse to get more conservative than he's been over the past month, and with the Minnesota secondary getting healthier than it has been in weeks, the Under feels like a solid play.

When the bright lights are on, Russell Wilson shines. The nocturnal Seattle QB carries a 26-7-1 outright mark into this matchup. Counterpart Kirk Cousins, on the other hand, is 7-14 straight-up in prime time and even worse ATS. The Seahawks have covered in all four wins this season and have taken down the Vikings SU in six straight. Count on Wilson to lacerate Minnesota's inexperienced secondary.

Minnesota still is a desperate team with just a 1-3 record. The Vikings have scored 30 or more points in three of their four games. They also are last in the league in passes on first and second down, which should change in this contest. The Seahawks have scored at least 30 points in every game so far but have played against the 22nd-, 23rd-, 31st- and 32nd-ranked defenses. As poor as MInnesota has played, I have its defense rated higher than Seattle's first four opponents and better than the Seahawks' unit.

The Seahawks are one of the few teams that remain 4-0 both ATS and SU. But they’ve shown vulnerability each of the last three weeks. QB Russell Wilson’s unblemished career record of 5-0 against the Vikings, combined with Seattle's hot start, are overvalued in this spot. Minnesota is not a normal 1-3 team and should continue to show improved play. Grab the Vikings.

Minnesota is coming off of its first victory of the season, thanks in part to RB Dalvin Cook, who leads the NFL in rushing. Seatlle's ability to stay active around the line of scrimmage will slow down the Vikings run game enough to put the ball in Kirk Cousins hands more often than the Vikings want. If Cousins can't get into a groove coming off of play action, he will struggle. Look for that to be the case in Seattle.

One of my favorite traditions has always been fading Kirk Cousins in spotlight games. He's not just bad on Monday Night Football! Monday nights, Sunday nights, late Sunday afternoons, the man crumbles in the spotlight. And going against Russell Wilson? This is easy.

The Vikings got back on track last week, but it took playing a mess of a franchise that fired its coach/GM after the game to do so. When the dust settled, the Vikings came away with an eight-point win thanks largely to the success of the running game. But the Seahawks rank third in yards per rush allowed and are largely beatable through the air. Maybe that means Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson will have a big day, but I can't see the Minnesota offense keeping up with Russell Wilson and Co., who get to play a Vikings defense that ranks 30th in net yards per pass attempt. The line moved 2.5 points from the lookahead toward Minnesota, but I don't see sense in that.