Vikings vs Eagles: Thursday Night Football X-Factors and Prediction

 

Week 2 of the 2023 NFL season is on the horizon and what a great game we have to kick off the Thursday Night Football schedule as the Vikings travel to Philadelphia to take on the defending NFC champion Eagles.

The Vikings (0-1) are trying to bounce back from a tough loss at home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday and win their first game of the season, while the Eagles (1-0) are trying to build off of their road victory over the New England Patriots in Week 1.

These two teams also squared off in Week 2 of last season on Monday Night Football. The Eagles won that game 24-7 in Philly as they dominated on both sides of the trenches led by quarterback Jalen Hurts, who gained 390 total yards in the victory.

Let's take a look at 3 very important X-factors for tonight's game and who I think will win.

X-Factor #1: Vikings offensive line vs. Eagles pass rush

The most important question in tonight's game is this: can the Vikings protect Kirk Cousins? Last season, the Eagles' defence led the league with 70 sacks, and most NFL fans and experts would agree that Philly has the best pass rush in football. Led by Haason Reddick (16 sacks in 2022), Josh Sweat (11 sacks in 2022), Brandon Graham (11 sacks), Fletcher Cox (6 sacks in 2022), and recent first-round picks Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter (8 pressures in his debut against the Patriots in Week 1), Philadelphia has a plethora of pass rushers from the edge and from the interior that can get to the quarterback. If Vikings standout left tackle Christian Darrisaw can't play, Cousins will be in for a very long night.

X-Factor #2: Vikings cornerbacks vs. Eagles wide receivers

Minnesota's secondary (really their defence in general) is filled with youth. Their two starting cornerbacks are Byron Murphy Jr. and Akayleb Evans. Murphy has experience, but this is his first year in the NFL where he is primarily playing on the outside rather than in the slot and Evans is only in his second year in the league. These two will absolutely have their hands full with Eagles wideouts A.J. Brown (1,496 receiving yards, 11 touchdowns in 2022) and DeVonta Smith (1,196 receiving yards, 7 touchdowns in 2022), who combine to make up one of the best wide receiver duos in the league. Don't be surprised if Brown and/or Smith go for 100+ receiving yards in tonight's matchup.

X-Factor #3: Justin Jefferson vs. Darius Slay

Last year, when these two teams matched up against each other, a big reason why the Eagles won was because they shut down Vikings All-Pro wide receiver Justin Jefferson. Jefferson, who caught 128 passes for 1,809 yards last season, only had six catches for 48 yards against the Eagles in their 2022 matchup. All-Pro cornerback Darius Slay did an excellent job of defending Jefferson in man-to-man coverage, as he intercepted two passes in that game that were intended for No. 18. If Jefferson can get the best of Slay this time around, that would give Minnesota a decent chance of pulling off the upset on the road.

Prediction:

The Vikings are a solid team, and they will definitely be motivated to win this game after they got dominated by Philly last season. But the Eagles are the more talented team, and they are at home. Usually in the NFL, the team that is better in the trenches (i.e. protecting their own quarterback and getting after the opposing team's quarterback) wins the game, and the Eagles have huge advantages in both of those areas. Also, Kirk Cousins generally struggles in primetime games, especially ones on the road. Eagles will go to 2-0.

Vikings 20 Eagles 31