Minnesota Vikings vs. Cincinnati Bengals Prop Pick: Can Joe Mixon Make an Impact on Saturday Afternoon?
Minnesota Vikings vs. Cincinnati Bengals Prop Pick: Can Joe Mixon Make an Impact on Saturday Afternoon?
The regular season is beginning to wind down, as we can tell from the Saturday games we are getting today. The Vikings and Bengals kick things off with a 1:00 pm EST kickoff from Cincinnati. Both teams enter this game 7-6 and are fighting for their playoff lives. The Vikings are still hanging on to a wild card spot in the NFC, thanks to a 3-0 shutout win over the Raiders last week. The Bengals, meanwhile, are on the outside looking in at the moment, but after two wins with Jake Browning at the helm, they could very easily be in a playoff spot with a win today. What can we expect from Joe Mixon and the Bengals with a lot on the line?
Vikings vs. Bengals Date, Time, and Where to Watch
- Date:Â December 16, 2023
- Game Time:Â 1:00 pm ET
- Where to Watch:Â NFL Network
Minnesota Vikings vs. Cincinnati Bengals Prediction
Joe Mixon's yards per carry has gone down the last three seasons, and this year he is averaging just 3.8 yards per carry. It is looking like he will not pass 1,000 rushing yards despite being the main workhorse back for the Bengals and staying healthy all season. Despite this, he is still a versatile player and is a good weapon in the offense because of his ability to run in space, catch the ball, and make plays. He has nearly half the receiving yards this year as he does rushing yards.
Mixon's receiving line opened at 20.5 yards and jumped to 22.5 pretty quickly. Today, before the game, it is at 24.5 on most books and even up to 25.5 on some. This is a crazy low line when you consider Jake Browning is leading this offense and they have been relying on Mixon quite a bit. Browning has looked pretty good for a rookie coming off the bench in place of an injured Joe Burrow, and part of that is using his "easy" targets, like check-downs and screens to Mixon, to get the ball moving.
In the three games with Browning under center, Mixon has 139 receiving yards combined and 163 rushing yards combined. He has amassed over 40 receiving yards in all three of Browning's starts. Is this a coincidence? Not at all. It's part of using Mixon as an easy target for Browning to get him worked into games and build his confidence, and we see these heavy receiving games from running backs with rookie/backup quarterbacks all the time. Joe Mixon has averaged 25.2 receiving yards per game this season, and his usage in the passing game has gone up with Browning in, so 24.5 should be easy today.
Minnesota Vikings vs. Cincinnati Bengals Pick
Pick: Joe Mixon Over 24.5 Receiving Yards -112 Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds
Win a $50 Gift Card on NFL Sunday Football
Think you know what's going to happen in various games on NFL Sunday this week? Answer the pick questions below for your chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card!
NFL Odds
Article Author
Ben Rajavuori is a handicapper out of Minneapolis, MN. He has been creating sports content for almost four years now and is an expert in all things NFL, MLB, NBA, UFC, and NCAAB. Ben thrives on diving deep into statistics to find the best angle on every bet. You can follow him on Twitter @WeBeatTheSpread.