:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71848499/1455093882.0.jpg "Vikings-Giants predictions: Early pick against the spread for 2023 NFL Wild Card Round matchup")
The New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings will take the field in a Wild Card matchup on Sunday afternoon from U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. ET and will air on FOX.
The Giants (9-7-1) are in the playoffs for the first time since 2016, and they clinched a Wild Card spot in the postseason in Week 18. New York needed to see improvement from Daniel Jones this season, and that's what it received in 2022 with career highs in completion percentage (67.2%) and passing yards (3,205) to go along with a career-low in interceptions (five).
The Vikings (13-4) are back in the playoffs after missing out on the postseason in the last two seasons as the No. 3 seed in the NFC. Minnesota took advantage of a very good record in close games and will enter the playoffs with a -3 point differential despite winning 13 of 17 matchups.
Opening point spread: Vikings -3
Opening point total: 47.5
Opening moneyline: Vikings -150, Vikings +130
Early pick ATS: Vikings -3
The Giants will likely be a trendy pick considering how fortunate the Vikings have been all season to have the record they do, but Minnesota has a strong home field advantage to cover this number. Both defenses rank in the bottom 10 in yards per play, but the biggest difference in this matchup will be in the passing game where the Vikings are much better. Minnesota is ranked 10th in yards per pass attempt (7.2), while New York checks in at 25th in that category (6.6).