2016 Week 13 NFL Betting Preview – Cowboys vs. Vikings Line at Dallas -3

We have your 2016 Week 13 NFL betting preview for Thursday Night Football’s Cowboys vs. Vikings game where the line was Dallas -2.5 to -3 on the road.

Cowboys, Vikings Both in Playoffs Hunt

Dallas may own the best record in the league right now but they just happen to be in a division in which two other teams are above the .500 mark and the Giants are currently on a 6-game winning streak of their own, two games back from the Cowboys.  A win Thursday is important to maintain some distance between Dallas and New York with five more weeks in which to play. Dallas was at -1200 odds of winning the division (New York 8-1).   The Cowboys were listed at 4-1 odds of winning Super Bowl 51.

Minnesota, meanwhile, is just one game down from Detroit in a division that is still up for grabs and Green Bay simply cannot be counted out just yet. Minnesota will pay out 4-1 should they win the NFC North.

Vikings Spirits Still Strong Despite Injury Woes That Keep Mounting

Had Minnesota not have been so injury-riddled this season, it would likely be the Vikings with the best record in the NFL. 

“This week especially, (Bradford)’s put a lot of emphasis on us that we need to do more,” Vikings guard Alex Boone told USA TODAY Sports. “He came to us and said, ‘Hey, listen, we need you guys to sustain, and we need you guys to be tough, and you’ve got to be some bad (expletives) this week for me, because there’s some things I want to do and there’s some plays that might take longer.’

“When the big dog asks you to do something, you never say no.”

The Vikings will be without starting tackles Matt Kalil and Andre Smith and quite possibly center Joe Berger, who hasn’t practiced this week because of a concussion.

Cowboys-Vikings Line Movement

The books will be heavily exposed here as 75 percent of the action was on Dallas and the OVER with all three primary bets: the spread, money line and total (43.5).  The line, however, has moved down from -3.5 to -3 and even -2.5 at some books, an indication that the books believe Minnesota could cover here.  They were way off with their opinion on last week’s Giants/Browns game we should note.

Cowboys-Vikings Week 13 Thursday Night Football Trends

Dallas last faced Minnesota at home in 2013, beating them by four points.

The Cowboys are 5-0 Against The Spread in their last 5 road games but are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 meetings in Minnesota (with the last two games played there both in 2010).

A standout stat here is that the Vikings are 8-0 ATS in their last 8 home games vs. a team with a winning road record.

2016 Week 13 NFL Betting Lines

- Don Shapiro, Gambling911.com