5 bold Minnesota Vikings predictions for Week 9 vs. the Atlanta Falcons
By Chris Schad
The Minnesota Vikings will need to regroup quickly after Kirk Cousins’s season-ending injury as they travel to face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 9.
Things were looking up for the Minnesota Vikings through the first 50 minutes of last week’s game with the Green Bay Packers.
Jordan Addison looked like a star ready to break out. T.J. Hockenson was a dominant possession target. The offensive line was playing at a level Vikings fans haven’t seen in a decade, and Kirk Cousins was hitting his stride in his second year in Kevin O’Connell’s system.
Everything was looking good for Minnesota fans until the football gods threw a lightning bolt at Cousins’s Achilles. The injury brought a premature end to Cousins’s season and could spell doom for the Vikings as they quickly turn around to face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 9.
The Falcons are the type of opponent Minnesota will see often in the second half of the 2023 season. At 4-4, Atlanta is in the mix for a playoff spot, but they don’t have the look of a legitimate contender.
The Falcons' recent benching of starting quarterback Desmond Ridder for Taylor Heinicke adds another layer of intrigue, but head coach Arthur Smith can’t seem to get out of his own way to get his team to truly take off.
This creates an unpredictable matchup in Atlanta, but in this article, we will give five bold predictions to see if Hall and the Vikings can defeat the Falcons on Sunday.