It is time for Thanksgiving football for your New England Patriots. The Patriots head to Minnesota to play the Vikings, who, despite being 8-2, are coming off a rough game against Dallas in which they lost 40-3. The game will air on NBC Thursday Night with Mike Tirico handling play-by-play duties and Tony Dungy and Jason Garrett as the color analysts. The Patriots will look to improve to 7-4 on the season before hosting the Buffalo Bills the following Thursday at Gillette.
Quick hits
*This game will be the sixth Patriots Thanksgiving game and the first since 2012 against the Jets (butt fumble game).
* The Patriots are 3-2 when playing on Thanksgiving and have won three-straight Thanksgiving day games dating back to 2002.
* This will be the second primetime appearance for the Patriots. The Patriots played on Monday Night Football against the Bears in Week 7. After this game, the Patriots will have four straight primetime games.
*The Patriots and Vikings will square off for the 14th time, with New England owning a 9-4 record.
* The Patriots are 3-2 in Minnesota, but this will be their first game played at U.S. Bank stadium.
*23 teams have had overlap with current Vikings and Patriots players.
* There are two stadiums Bill Belichick hasn’t played at, Allegiant Stadium and U.S. Bank Stadium. If Belichick wins Thursday Night, he will have won a football game at 51 different stadiums.
* K Nick Folk needs four more field goals to reach 100 field goals and become the fifth Patriot to reach that milestone.
* Matthew Judon is first in the NFL in sacks with 13 sacks, and he is on pace for 22 sacks which would be one sack short of claiming the NFL record. Judon would also clear the franchise record, which Andree Tippit holds with 18.5 sacks.
* If Tyquan Thornton has a rushing touchdown this week, he will become the first rookie wide receiver with two rushing touchdowns.
* CB Jalen Mills needs one interception this week to match his career-high (3).
Connections
Former Patriots
NA
Former Vikings
James O’Shaughnessy, Kevin O’Connell
Who has the advantage?
When the Patriots run: Winner: Patriots
The Patriots rushing attack has been average all season, with Rhamondre Stevenson and Damien Harris leading the way. New England averages 117.2 yards a game (17th in the NFL) and 4.05 per run (26th in the NFL). The Patriots started the season well, rushing the ball, but the attack slowed. Rhamondre Stevenson has taken over the RB1 role, but Damien Harris was the better back last week. Stevenson was limited to 26 yards on 15 carries against the Jets. On the other hand, Harris ran for 65 yards on 15 yards, including big runs of 30 and 22 yards. Meanwhile, the Patriots’ offensive line isn’t in great shape and has had trouble this season. They may be without veteran David Andrews and tackle Isaiah Wynn this week, which could be bad news for New England. Thankfully the Vikings have had their troubles stopping the run and rank 18th in yards allowed per game (121.6) and allow 4.39 yards per play (14th in the NFL). Led by lineman Harrison Phillips and linebackers Jordan Hicks and Eric Kendricks, the Vikings let Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott run for 146 yards last week.
When the Vikings run: Winner: Patriots
One of New England’s most significant issues coming into the season was their slow linebackers and the lack of skill when it comes to stopping the run. The Patriots have done an excellent job stopping the run this season but had rough times stopping Baltimore, Green Bay, and Chicago. Two of those teams have dynamic quarterbacks, Lamar Jackson, and Justin Fields. The Patriots currently rank 13th allowing 114.5 yards on the ground and allowing 4.47 yards per attempt, which is good for 17th. The deffenive line is led by Lawrence Guy, Davon Godchaux and Deatrich Wise. On the flip side, the Vikings have one of the most explosive running backs in the league, Dalvin Cook. Cook has 799 yards on the season with six touchdowns and averages 5.1 yards per attempt. However, Minnesota is more of a passing offense, and the Vikings only average 103.6 yards per game (24th in the NFL). Last Sunday, left tackle Christian Darrisaw left the game with a concussion and has already been ruled out for Thursday. Therefore, the Patriots should be able to shut down this area of the game and focus more resources on the pass defense.
When the Patriots pass: Winner: Patriots
The Patriots haven’t scored an offensive touchdown since Week 8 against the Jets, but they have a favorable matchup in the Viking’s secondary. The Vikings rank second to last in both passing yards allowed per game (267) and yards allowed per play (7.59). However, the Vikings can intercept the ball with Patrick Peterson and Harrison Smith combining for seven picks. The Patriots have struggled offensively. This should be a good game to get the tight ends involved after multiple games with a lack of production Hunter Henry was a magnet in the endzone, but he hasn’t had the opportunities as of late. The offense should improve if the Patriots can spread the field and utilize a quick passing game. However, the Patriots’ o-line is banged up, and the Viking’s pass rush is dominant. Za’Darius Smith and Danielle Hunter have combined for 15.5 sacks this season. As a team, the Vikings have 26 sacks at the top of the league. Mac Jones has been sacked 16 times in his last three games, and that will have to improve to give Mac and the receivers time.
When the Vikings pass: Winner: Patriots
The Patriot’s pass defense has been on fire lately, but they will get tested with a good Vikings offense. Kirk Cousins is averaging 234.9 yards a game, 10th in the league but is 26th in the league averaging 6.07 yards per pass attempt. On the season, Kirk Cousins has thrown 2,461 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the Vikings to an 8-2 record. However, last week the Vikings got exposed, letting up seven sacks in a 40-3 loss to the Cowboys. Justin Jefferson has been Cousin’s favorite target. He has tallied 72 receptions for 1,093 yards and four touchdowns. The Vikings also acquired T.J. Hockenson from the Lions in a trade, and he’s helped the offense and has 21 receptions since he joined the team. The Patriots faced Hockenson with the Lions, and the Patriots limited him to one catch for six yards. The Patriots’ defense has limited opposing offenses to 183.3 yards per game and 5.83 yards per play. Kirk Cousins has had his struggles on Primetime, which should continue on Thursday night.
Special teams: Winner: Patriots
Special teams won the game for New England against New York last week. Rookie Marcus Jones returned a punt 84 yards at the end of the fourth quarter and scored the first touchdown of his career. Jones is at the top of the league in many returning metrics and has flashed his speed and agility many times. Meanwhile, Nick Folk had his worst game to date, as he missed two field goals due to the wind and rough weather conditions. The Vikings roll with Kicker Greg Joseph, who has been 14 of 19 field goals and 21 of 25 on PATs. Onto the punting game, the Patriots placed Jake Bailey on the injured reserve last season and brought in veteran Micheal Palardy to kick punts. Palardy had a good game averaging 41.1 net yards on Sunday. Ryan Wright punts for the Vikings, and he has had no touchbacks on 48 points averaging 43.3 net yards per punt. Kene Nwangwu returns kicks for the Vikings, averaging 23.9 but hasn’t produced as well as Marcus Jones.
Senior coaching staff
New England:
Head Coach – Bill Belichick
Senior football advisor/offensive line – Matt Patricia
Offensive assistant/quarterbacks – Joe Judge
Running backs – Vinnie Sunseri
Wide receivers – Troy Brown
Offensive line – Billy Yates
Linebackers – Steve Belichick
Linebackers – Jerod Mayo
Cornerbacks – Mike Pellegrino
Special Teams Coordinator – Cam Achord
Minnesota:
Head Coach – Kevin O’Connell
Offensive Coordinator – Wes Phillips
Offesnive line – Chris Kuper
Quarterbacks – Chris O’Hara
Wide receivers – Keenan McCardell
Defensive line – Chris Rumph
Inside linebackers – Greg Manusky
Defensive backs – Daronte Jones
Special Teams Coordinator – Matt Daniels
Injury Report
Key:
DNP: Did not participate in practice
LP: Limited participation in practice
FP: Full participation in practice
NL: Not listed
Patriots:
Out
OL Isaiah Wynn – Foot
Questionable
C David Andrews – Thigh
DB Marcus Jones – Ankle
WR DeVante Parker – Knee
OT Yodny Cajuste – Calf
Vikings:
Out
CB Andrew Booth Jr. – Knee
T Christian Darrisaw – Concussion
CB Akayleb Evans – Concussion
Questionable
DL Dalvin Tomlinson – Calf
Latest Patriots transactions
11/21 Patriots Release RB J.J. Taylor
11/21 Patriots Sign K Tristan Vizcaino to the Practice Squad
11/22 Patriots Sign OL Conor McDermott from the New York Jets Practice Squad
Game Officials
Head Referee – Alex Kemp (7th season in the NFL and 5th as head official).
Weather Forcast
Cloudy skies. Temps are nearly steady in the mid-30s. Winds WNW at 10 to 15 mph. 8% rain.
Broadcast information
From Patriots.com
TELEVISION: This week’s game will be broadcast by NBC and can be seen locally on NBC 10 Boston. Mike Tirico will handle play-by-play duties with Tony Dungy and Jason Garrett as the color analyst. Melissa Stark will work from the sidelines. The game will be produced by Robert Hyland and directed by Drew Esocoff.
NATIONAL RADIO: Thursday’s game will be broadcast to a national audience on Westwood One. Bill Rosinski will call the game, with Ryan Harris providing analysis.
LOCAL RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub is the flagship station for the Patriots Radio Network. Play-by-play broadcaster Bob Socci will call the action along with former Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak, who will provide color analysis. Marc Cappello produces the games.
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My name is Ben Belford-Peltzman and I am the creator and writer of The Patriots Beat. I am a 17-year kid who is an optimistic pessimist about the City of Champions. I started The Patriots Beat in August of 2022 and never expected to grow so much but here we are. Feel free to email Thepatriotsbeat@gmail.com with any inquires.
