Week 13: Bills vs. Vikings
at
Sunday, Dec. 5th
1:00pm ET
The Bills head to Minnesota to take on the Brett Favre and the disappointing Vikings. It will be the first home game for interim head coach Leslie Frazier. The Bills have yet to lose a game to a team with a losing record and try to get past their heartbreaking third overtime loss of the season last week at home against Pittsburgh.

FACTS AND FIGURES

Matchup: Buffalo (2-9) vs. Minnesota (4-7)
Place: Mall of America Field
TV/Radio: Network: CBS; DirecTV: 706; Sirius: 129
Announcers: Kevin Harlan and Solomon Wilcots
Spread: Vikings by 6½
Series: Vikings lead 7-4
Streak: Bills Won 2
Last Meeting: Bills 17-12 in Buffalo (2006)
Vikings Offense: Rush (10th); Pass (19th); overall (20th)
Vikings Defense: Rush (5th); Pass (14th); overall (9th)
Bills Offense: Rush (18th); Pass (23rd); overall (25th)
Bills Defense: Rush (32nd); Pass (11th); overall (26th)


INJURY UPDATE

The Bills will be without Dwan Edwards who injured his hamstring in the loss to the Steelers. Reggie Torbor is also out with a shoulder injury. They do expect to get two players back from hamstring injuries as C.J. Spiller and Spencer Johnson appear set to return. It seems unlikely that Terrence McGee will play and Eric Wood will be questionable at best.

The Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson suffered a sprained ankle in last week's game. His status won't be determined until the weekend but he is missing practice time. OG Steve Hutchinson is bothered by a thumb injury that is costing him practice time. DL Ray Edwards suffered an ankle injury on Sunday and WR Greg Lewis is suffering from a concussion.

Check out our Bills Daily Injury Page throughout the week for the latest updates on the injured players.

KEY MATCHUPS

LB Paul Posluszny vs. RB Adrian Peterson:
The best chance Poz and the rest of the Bills defense has to stop Peterson is if his injured ankle slows him down. If it doesn't, then Peterson is on his way to a 200 yard game.

RB Fred Jackson vs. DTs Pat Williams and Kevin Williams:
Jackson did well against the top run defense in the league last week. He now faces the two behemoths in the middle of the Vikings defense led by former Bill Pat Williams. He is the oldest defensive player in the league and is still playing at a very high level.

CB Leodis McKelvin vs. WR Percy Harvin:
This is a battle of two very athletic players. Harvin moves around a lot to make plays in space. McKelvin has done very well in coverage since moving into the starting lineup and will matchup with Harvin on most downs.

LT Demeterius Bell vs. DE Jared Allen:
Bell is really coming into his own this year and has yet to give up a sack this season. He goes against the Vikings sack master in Allen who has 7½ on the season.

WR Stevie Johnson vs. CB Antoine Winfield:
All eyes will be on Johnson and how he bounces back after his horrid performance against the Steelers that cost the Bills the game. He goes up against another former Bill in Winfield who continues to be one of the better corners in the league.

DE Alex Carrington vs. LT Bryant McKinnie:
Carrington is getting more and more playing time as the season progresses. He may not start but with Edwards down he will play in passing situations. He will likely go up against a guy that many thought the Bills should have drafted nine years ago instead of Mike Williams.

GAME PLAN

When The Bills Have The Ball: They will likely take the same approach they did last week and attack through the air to keep the game away from the mammoth front four of the Vikings. Look for quick, short passes to keep the pass rush away from Ryan Fitzpatrick. Jackson will likely be busy in the passing game once again.

When The Vikings Have The Ball: If they run the ball 30 times with Peterson if he's healthy then they win the game end of story. Favre just needs to manage this game, if he tries to become a hero he can keep the Bills in the game with mistakes.

BILLS DAILY PREDICTION

It's been hard to pick the Bills to win this year based on their record but it is becoming increasingly hard to ignore how tough they have been on gameday. They have been in every game since a week 4 loss to the Jets. The Vikings are playing better lately and match up well with the Bills. Favre may have some magic left and Peterson is the best back in the league. That doesn't bode well for the Bills:
Vikings 31, Bills 23

Season Prediction Record: (8-3)
Season Record Against The Spread: (5-6)

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