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Vikings vs. Bears Same Game Parlay for Monday Night Football

by Sloan Piva (SloanPiva) Last Updated 2021-12-20 22:11:30

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Happy Monday and Happy Holidays, Grinders! We are excited to have NFL football on five of the seven days this week—it’s a Christmas miracle! Or, rather, a silver lining of a particularly rough stretch of COVID-19. Omicron be damned, we’re going to have a Monday Night Football game tonight, and we’re obviously going to be assembling a Same Game Parlay on PointsBet.

For anyone not following, a Same Game Parlay basically just means a parlay consisting of multiple correlated wagers from one specific game. It provides bettors with a plethora of options to bet a game—and piece together props into a parlay within that game—beyond just the standard spread, moneyline, and over/under totals.

SGPs have become one of the most popular ways to bet on professional sports, and we’ve been putting together parlay bets this way on PointsBet all season. Our last SGP column—last Thursday ahead of the Chiefs-Chargers primetime divisional clash—hit it big! Check out this seven-leg beauty that would have cashed you $700 on a 1500 bet.

Total Odds (7 Legs): +600

Holy mackerel, that was an instant classic of a Same Game Parlay. It was one of those SGPs that made me stop for a moment after I put it together, and text my managing editor “this is a winner.” What a feeling ahead of the holidays! And hey, there’s still plenty of time for us to cash in before Santa breaks into our house demanding cookies and milk. Let’s ride the momentum from TNF, and get right back to winning with our Monday Night Football SGP!

Vikings vs. Bears Same Game Parlay for MNF

Total Odds (6 Legs): +800

Pick Your Own Line: Minnesota -2.5 (-240)

With Same Game Parlays, you all know my mentality with primetime games by now: don’t bet the set spread at -110—bet a safe spread between -200 and -300. SGPs allow us to basically buy points and grab a spread that’s much more likely to hit. Minnesota should absolutely beat Chicago this evening, but the Bears defense at Soldier Field in late December gives me pause at -6.5. I’ll gladly buy the four points for -130, and decrease my potential payout while increasing my odds of winning. The Vikings are still in the playoff hunt, battling for the NFC’s final Wild Card spot, and they have plenty of talent with QB Kirk Cousins, All-World back Dalvin Cook, and wideouts Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen. Plus, Minnesota has much better depth going into the evening. The Bears have suffered a rash of injuries over the home stretch of this season, one of the many reasons they have lost seven of their last eight games. Chicago also has a dozen players—including seven key defenders—and three different coordinators out due to COVID-19 protocols. I’ll take the fringe playoff team over a decimated 4-9 squad led by shaky rookie QB Justin Fields. But I’ll only take the Vikes by a field goal—this squad has blown far too many big leads for me to trust them to win by a touchdown.

Alternate Totals: UNDER 52.5 (-301)

On Thursday, I dropped the total down substantially, and took the OVER on the alternate total of 47.5 at -210. Today, I’m raising the total from 45 to 52.5 and taking the UNDER at -301. Basically, I just don’t trust Chicago’s depleted unit to produce a bevy of points and force Minnesota into a shootout. Sure, the Bears just put up 30 points against Green Bay last week, arguably the best performance of Fields’ young career. But dive deeper into the box score of that 45-30 loss, and you’ll see that the rookie still finished just 18-of-33 for 224 yards, two TDs, and two picks. Chicago’s third touchdown came on a punt return, the only punt return score of the 2021 NFL season. I think the Bears will be between 14-22, and depending on game script, the Vikings should finish between 17-30. That’s right about where they are scoring-wise on the season—Chicago has averaged 17.8 points per game, while Minnesota has averaged 26.5.

Total Touchdowns: UNDER 5.5 (-145)

This one’s a little riskier than the last prop, because it requires both teams to be somewhat underwhelming offensively. But that wouldn’t be that surprising to me—Minnesota averages three TDs per game this season, while Chicago averages 1.9. Chicago’s not going to score special-teams touchdowns in back-to-back weeks, and its COVID-depleted secondary won’t have much luck pick-sixing Cousins. The veteran QB has a 66.9 percent completion rate, 27 TDs to just five interceptions, and a 103.5 QB rating on the season. I think the Vikings top out at three TDs—four if it’s a blowout—and the Bears break the plane twice (but just once if it’s a blowout).

Away Team Touchdowns: Vikings OVER 2.5 (-200)

You might be thinking, this guy’s messing with a lot of touchdown props, eh? Yeah, Canadian reader voice, I am. I’m doubling down on my projections, which I think are strong. I like the Vikings’ ability to score at least three TDs, like they have in six consecutive games (and seven of their last eight). I can’t explain it enough—Minnesota is motivated by Wild Card hopes, and Chicago is banged up, full of COVID scratches, and without multiple coaches. Skip the last one if you want to keep it safe, but play this one with full confidence.

Anytime Touchdown Scorer: Dalvin Cook (-191)

Cook looked like a man possessed last week in his return from a shoulder injury, obliterating the Steelers for 205 rushing yards and two touchdowns. I may ask my recreational volleyball league if I can start wearing whatever shoulder harness Cook was wearing, because he looked as strong as ever. Now the two-time Pro Bowler gets a Chicago front-seven that just allowed Green Bay’s A.J. Dillon and Aaron Jones to combine for 20-106-1 last week (5.3 yards per carry). Cook is the central focus of this Minnesota offense—when they win, he usually plays an integral part. With the Bears banged up, and more than likely getting themselves into some trouble with pass interference in the red zone, the league’s third-leading rusher should at least fall into the end zone once.

Justin Fields OVER 17.5 Completions (-115)

Hey, look—I’m kinda saying something positive about the Bears! Well, it’s more like a back-handed compliment, as I expect Fields will be forced to throw the ball a ton to try to keep the Bears in the game. Minnesota allows 22.3 completions per game—23.3 over its last three—and Fields just completed 18 passes last week at Lambeau Field. At home against a Vikings secondary that pales in comparison to Green Bay’s, I think Fields can complete 20+ passes for the second time in his career—or at least 18+ for the fourth time in his last six starts.

Image Credit: Imagn

About the Author

SloanPiva
Sloan Piva (SloanPiva)

Sloan Piva is a veteran of the sports journalism industry, and a freelance sports betting analyst. He received his master’s degree in Professional Writing from the University of Massachusetts, and currently resides in East Bay, Rhode Island with his wife and daughter. He covers the MLB, NFL, NBA, NCAA, and PGA, as well as anything related to fantasy sports and sports betting. Shoot him an email anytime at SloanPiva@gmail.com!