Vikings vs. Texans Week Three Preview
The Minnesota Vikings play the Houston Texans tomorrow in a matchup of two undefeated teams. One of these teams will head into Week Four with a perfect record of 3-0 which will have them primed for a playoff spot when January rolls around. This matchup is suddenly more exciting than it looked like it was going to be just a few short weeks ago. The Texans were expected to be good and have lived up to expectations thus far, but the Vikings have surprised many people with how good their offense has been, and what's even more surprising is that their defense has been even better than their offense. Kickoff is at 1:00 p.m. EST at U.S. Bank Stadium and it should be a good one.
As far as injuries go, both teams are missing some major pieces on the offensive side of the ball. The Houston Texans will be without two of their running backs as Joe Mixon is nursing an ankle injury and Dameon Pierce is dealing with a hamstring injury. This will mean Cam Akers will be the starter for the Texans and he will get to play against his former team. As for Minnesota, they will be missing wide receiver Jordan Addison for a second consecutive week as he continues to heal up his ankle. The much heavier losses are on the defensive side for the Vikings. They will be without rookie Dallas Turner and linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. as they are both dealing with leg injuries. Those are two very impactful players for Minnesota and it will definitely have an obvious effect on the defensive game plan for Brian Flores.
This is a return game for two other first-year Texans, Danielle Hunter and Stefon Diggs. Neither have played a game in Minnesota outside of a purple uniform so there could be a little bit of added motivation for those specific players. Diggs was traded from the Vikings to the Bills in 2020, and Hunter signed with Houston during the offseason. I expect this game to be somewhat high-scoring scoring with both teams having high-powered offenses and the Vikings being short-handed on defense. The Texans should be leaning heavily on the passing game with their lack of healthy running backs. I truly see this matchup is going to come down to which team can be better on defense and with the Vikings missing key pieces in their front seven I think the Texans will pull out another victory. I think this game will be close but Houston’s defense and C.J. Stroud's stellar play will be the difference maker in a 30-27 win for the Texans.
