Cowboys vs. Vikings Expert Picks: Anybody Taking The Vikings? Anybody?

The Cowboys are 10.5-point favorites at home against Minnesota, with the over/under set at 47.5. The last time the Cowboys were favored by 10.5 points was in Week 13 last year, when they hosted the Eagles in a game for which the over/under at the time was set at 44.5.

In that game, the Cowboys entered the fourth quarter trailing the Eagles 24-17 before pulling away for a final score of 38-33. Will Sunday's game be an equally wild affair?

Here's what some prominent pigskin pundits foresee for the game:

Name (Cowboys accuracy)	Pick	Score	Comment
Michael Smith, Pro Football Talk (6-2)		27-13	The Cowboys’ defense may be shellshocked after what Calvin Johnson did to them on Sunday, but there’s no way the Vikings’ terrible passing game is going to make big plays in Dallas. The Cowboys will probably only need to win eight games to win the NFC East, and they’ll earn their fifth win on Sunday.
Peter Schrager, Foxsports (6-2)		34-17	The Cowboys gave up an eye-popping 623 yards of offense in Detroit last week -- the 11th most in league history -- and have now lost three different games in which they’ve had leads in the fourth quarter. And yet, they’re on Cloud Nine compared to the Vikings. Minnesota gave up 182 yards rushing last week and the Packers scored on all but one of their drives. The Cowboys are desperate for an easy opponent after that heartbreaking Lions loss. The scheduling gods did them a favor here.
Don Banks, SI.com (6-2)		34-17	How's that Monte Kiffin hiring working out for you, Cowboys? Dallas is on pace to give up 6,760 yards, almost 1,100 yards more than the Cowboys allowed in 2012, when that total set a franchise record and helped cost Ryan his job. Now New Orleans' defensive coordinator, Ryan has helped the Saints play dramatically better after they allowed a league-record 7,042 yards last season.
Mike Florio, Pro Football Talk (6-2)		35-17	Adrian Peterson returns home to Texas to face a team that could really use him. Even without him, they have enough firepower to defeat a Vikings team that could be worse than the 3-13 edition from 2011.
Sam Farmer, L.A. Times (5-3)		31-14	The Vikings have no solid answer at quarterback, and that will haunt them all season. Despite late-game miscues, Tony Romo has mostly played well for the Cowboys, who should prevail at home.
Todd Archer, ESPN Dallas (5-3)		30-23	Nothing will come easy for the Cowboys just because that's who they are and the St. Louis Rams do not appear on the schedule again. The Cowboys have played well at home this year, and that will continue Sunday. Dez Bryant's passion will lead to two touchdown receptions and a big hug for quarterback Tony Romo.
The Other ESPN Guy (5-3)		35-31	Ben Goessling: The Vikings simply dont match up well with a team with the kind of prolific passing game the Cowboys have, especially with all the injuries Minnesota has in its secondary. Short of Adrian Peterson dazzling in his return to his native north Texas, the Vikings could be headed for 1-7.
Pete Prisco, CBS Sports (5-3)		34-17	The Vikings are struggling in a big way. The passing game is horrible, and so is the defense. The Cowboys, meanwhile, are home after two road games, including a tough loss last week at Detroit. They rebound in a big way here. Dallas rolls behind a big game by Tony Romo.
Elliot Harrison, NFL.com (5-3)		30-13	The sky might not be falling in Dallas, but the Cowboys' fan base is certainly sick of seeing colossal failures in the late moments. A matchup against a struggling Vikings team might seem like it will be a great elixir, but at the end of the day, a Cowboys win will have proved nothing; Dallas needs to show it can close the door on a solid club. Still, in matchups like these -- particularly at home -- the Cowboys generally play well enough to get everyone talking again. Josh Freeman will probably get the call at quarterback for Minnesota, but whoever starts, the offense has to make good on vertical throws. The Vikings have completed just five passes that have traveled more than 20 yards in the air. And Greg Jennings has been a nonfactor, catching all of, well, one ball last Sunday.
Vinny Iyer, Sporting News (5-3)		42-14	Let’s relax on the Cowboys. They’re still 4-4 with three big division wins, so they’re still in control in the NFC East. That goes for you, too, Dez Bryant. He should just be able to chillax and give the cold shoulder to the Vikings’ reeling secondary with his size, strength, speed, etc. November is the money month for Tony Romo, and his warmup for the Thanksgiving feast begins here. Pretty sure the Vikings would love someone like Romo with their QB enigma
Greg Cote, Miami Herald (4-4)		34-20	I wonder. Does Dez Bryant’s game preparation during the week involve yelling at people? Vikes were weighing whether to start Christian Ponder or Josh Freeman, but I doubt it matters unless Adrian Peterson — with only 150 yards during the past three games — gets untracked. Cows should get RB DeMarco Murray back and keep Purples winless on the road. Tony Romo has best November record of any QB in Super Bowl era (21-4) and should be fantasy-big against a weak secondary. Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/11/01/3723899_p2/greg-cotes-week-9-nfl-picks.html#storylink=cpy

All 11 pundits above like the Cowboys for the win, the table below summarizes a couple of other pick 'em panels where the predictions are also quite lopsided.

So there you have it, folks. Nobody is picking the Vikings. The Cowboys are expected to win easily and by a large margin.

Which probably just means that it's not going to be easy and it's going to be a tight game.

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