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- The Los Angeles Rams (10-7) are 1.5-point home underdogs against the Vikings (14-3)
- Matthew Stafford threw four touchdown passes in a Week 7 victory over Minnesota
- The Wild Card Weekend matchup kicks off from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA on Monday night at 8 pm ET on ESPN/ABC
Following their 31-9 loss to Detroit in the NFL’s Sunday night season finale, Minnesota will open the playoffs on the road in Los Angeles. The Vikings’ 14 wins are tied for the most wins by any club to not clinch the No. 1 seed in their conference since seeding began in 1975. Meanwhile, the Rams should be ready and roaring to go after resting many of their starters in a 30-25 home loss to Seattle.
Before we look at the odds for Monday Night Football, check out our best NFL Playoff Betting Tips and find the top betting sites for NFL football 2025.
Rams vs Vikings
 | Spread | Money Line | Total Points |
| Minnesota Vikings | -1.5 (-110) | -130 | Un 47 (-110) |
| Los Angeles Rams | +1.5 (-110) | +110 | Ov 47 (-110) |
Darnold short circuits
After enjoying the best season of his career, Sam Darnold finished 18 of 41 for 166 yards in a 31-9 defeat to the Lions on Sunday night. Pressured on a ridiculous 48.9% of his dropbacks, Darnold repeatedly missed Justin Jefferson, who finished with just three catches for 54 yards.
Darnold finished the season with 4,319 passing yards (5th), 35 TDs (5th) and 12 interceptions. However, if he flails against Los Angeles on Monday night, the Vikings will surely let him walk in free agency and roll the dice with #10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy.
Let’s talk about Sam Darnold…
“This was a guy that was a bust a year ago… To the biggest game in Detroit in 50 years. It wasn’t going to be his night.” — @ColinCowherd pic.twitter.com/zjr1jhmKcw
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) January 6, 2025
McVay rests starters
While two of Minnesota’s three losses this season came against Detroit, the other one was to their Wild Card opponent. The Rams downed the Vikings 30-20 on Thursday night in Week 7 on the strength of four touchdown passes from Matthew Stafford. This might be part of the reason why Sean McVay chose to rest his starters versus Seattle and forego a win that would’ve landed them a game with Washington in the Wild Card round.
After starting the season 1-4, Los Angeles captured nine of their final 12 games to win the NFC West. With Puka Nacua, Cooper Kupp and Kyren Williams all healthy heading into the Monday nighter, the Rams will be plenty capable of pulling off an upset on their home field.
Los Angeles vs Minnesota
Minnesota is a 1.5-point road favorite at SoFi Stadium and the over/under is set at 47 points. The Vikings have a top-ten scoring offense (25.4 PPG), ranking #6 in passing yards (237.8). Sean McVay’s passing attack ranks #10 (227.5 YPG), but they rank 20th in points scored (21.6) after struggling with slow starts most of the season.
The Vikings defense is limiting opponents to the 5th-fewest points (19.5) and the 2nd-fewest rushing yards (93.4) per game in the NFL. However, Brian Flores’ defense is just 28th against the pass, allowing 242 yards per contest. In his first game back from a knee injury, Puka Nacua made 7 grabs for 106 yards and a TD versus Minnesota in Week 7.
This angle of Matthew Stafford’s no-look pass. 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/vwWRUsMekn
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) February 14, 2022
Best Bet
Kevin O’Connell is a frontrunner for NFL Coach of the Year and Sam Darnold is a contender for Comeback Player of the Year – but it’s Los Angeles that has the advantage at both the coach and quarterback position.
Minnesota will have no answers for Matthew Stafford’s high-powered passing attack. Take the Rams to cover (+1.5) and win outright (+110) at home on Monday night with the OVER 47.
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