Vikings Fantasy Football Forecast: Who Steps Up Without Dalvin Cook?
Josh Frey
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The Minnesota Vikings will head to Detroit to take on the Lions this weekend, but the trip will be a bit more difficult in the wake of Dalvin Cook’s torn labrum. Cook is officially out this week and next, so Minnesota will need to rely heavily on Alexander Mattison for rushing production. Luckily, the Detroit Lions haven’t exactly been a tough matchup this year. That said, division rivals are always difficult games, so nothing should be taken lightly this week. Here is you Vikings fantasy football forecast for Week 13.
QB Kirk Cousins-Sit
This is a gut feeling. As bad as the Lions have been, they have been at least average against the pass. They rank among the top-20 in passing yards allowed, passing TDs allowed, and INTs. On top of that, I have serious concerns for Kirk Cousins. Specifically, I fear he will revert back to conservative football after that interception last week.
Cousins targeted Adam Thielen on that interception in the third quarter. Then, despite an electric first half from Thielen, he had just pass thrown his way the rest of the game. Cousins has been a solid Minnesota Viking fantasy football starter, but this just feels like it’s going to be a low point in that.
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Alexander Mattison- Start
Dalvin Cook obviously won’t be playing this weekend which opens the door for Alexander Mattison to have a big game. The young back has plenty of experience starting, this being his fifth in the last two years. He’s rushed for 112 and 113 yards in his two starts this season and found the end zone for the first time last week. The 113-yard performance actually came in Minnesota’s first game versus Detroit.
On top of the previous success, the Lions have continuously struggled against the run. They’ve allowed the fourth-most rushing yards and tenth-most rushing TDs this year. In terms of his Vikings fantasy football forecast, I project Mattison to at least be an RB2 this week.
Adam Thielen- Start
As little as Adam Thielen was targeted during the second half of that San Francisco loss, he can’t be benched. His potential to score touchdowns is so great that he has to be included as a starter for the Vikings fantasy football forecast. Thielen was very quiet in Minnesota’s last game against Detroit, catching two of just three targets. That said, he’s scored touchdowns in five of the last six games for the Vikings.
Odds are, he’ll get another one if the Vikings win as handily as I’m predicting they will (see Dustin Baker’s staff predictions article on VikingsTerritory). As I talked about in the Kirk Cousins section though, we may still see a weakened approach in the passing game. Slot Thielen in as a WR2 regardless.
Justin Jefferson- Sit
This is where I ultimately think the conservative football comes into play for the Vikings. In games where Cousins was noticeably worse as a passer, Jefferson has failed to get targets, or at least catchable targets. Jefferson had a stretch earlier this season where he got just nine targets over the course of two games. With his propensity for getting deep targets, I worry that we could see a similarly low target share this week.
Even late in last week’s game, Cousins clearly favored going to dump off targets in C.J. Ham and Tyler Conklin over his two star receivers. Sometimes the forecast is wrong, but I don’t see Jefferson being more than a flex player this weekend.
Vikings D/ST- Start
The Minnesota Vikings defense may get a major addition in Michael Pierce this Sunday. The team has struggled against the run this year, but with D’Andre Swift out, there is little to really worry about in that department. The Detroit Lions offense has also turned the ball over two or more times in five games this season. Minnesota has also forced two or more turnovers in four of their last seven.
On top of that, Kene Nwangwu is always a threat to break off a big play in the return game. It’s rare for the Vikings D/ST to be included in the fantasy football forecast, but this week is an opportunity for the group.
