This might sound both hopeful and hurtful to fans of both teams, but the Monday Night Football game featuring the Buffalo Bills (6-1) at Minnesota Vikings (6-1) might well be a preview of Sunday's big game on Valentine's Day from Los Angeles. How hilarious would it be to see the teams -- which are a combined 0-8 all-time (0-4 each) in their Super Bowl appearances -- meet there? That exact matchup is priced +3400. It's a typical 8:15 p.m. ET kick and on ESPN and ABC to close Week 9. You could say these clubs are in slightly different quarterback shape right now.
Maybe the first real NFL game I remember was that Dec. 2, 1985 epic between the unbeaten Bears and Dolphins from Miami. Of course, the Fins pulled the upset thanks to the "moving pocket," but I refuse to speak of that. I remember Chicago was 12-0 entering, but I thought Miami had a semi-close record thanks to Dan Marino. Nope, they were 8-4. I mention this because tonight marks only the third Monday game in league history between teams that entered 6-1 or better. I have to say, that surprises me.
The last such matchup was in 2018, when the 9-1 Rams beat the 9-1 visiting Chiefs by that memorable score of 54-51. It was the first time both teams scored 50 points in an NFL game. The other matchup was in 1990, when the 10-1 Niners won 7-3 against the 10-1 Giants. Pretty sure we won't get 105 points or 10 here, but it it's a higher final total that's good for MVP favorite Josh Allen and the Bills and their No. 1 scoring offense. The lower the better for the Vikings, their No. 1 scoring defense and new starting quarterback Carson Wentz.
Allegedly, Wentz is starting because Kyler Murray is dealing with a strained hamstring. Look, I'm not saying he is not, but I know a few Vikings writers, and that injury was essentially a reason to sit Murray and go back to Wentz. Murray is averaging just 170.3 passing yards per game, which was 30th among 31 qualified QBs entering Week 9. Superstar wideout Justin Jefferson clearly was getting frustrated with him. I believe this is now Wentz's job to lose.
But what happens if he struggles mightily and/or gets hurt? The trade deadline is Tuesday, so do the Vikings go out and get someone? Calling Kirk Cousins? With that Super Bowl-caliber defense, you may have to do something. Incidentally, second-year undrafted free agent Max Brosmer will be the backup. He got into eight games in 2025 with zero TDs and four picks in 71 attempts.
This marks the 14th time the Vikings have shifted from one quarterback to another in-season because of injuries or for performance reasons, since, ironically, Cousins tore his right Achilles midway through the 2023 season.
We'll take you through every aspect of the Bills vs. Vikings game that you need to know before you lock in your bets. We're including SportsLine expert picks, props, trends, DFS, injury information and everything else that will help you decide which plays are worth making for the prime-time matchup.
Join now to unlock this story plus unlimited picks from our computer model and 40+ experts
Join NowAlready a subscriber?Sign In
