49ers vs Vikings: Monday Night Football picks for Week 7

Monday Night Football kicks off tonight at 8:15 p.m. EST as the Minnesota Vikings host the San Francisco 49ers at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Niners are 7-point favorites, according to our friends at DraftKings Sportsbook, and the total is set at 43 points.

We have a bit of a quarterback mid-off on our hands as Kirk Cousins (a.k.a. Primetime Kirk) takes on Brock Purdy (a.k.a. Kyle Shanahan with a control stick). Both of these quarterbacks are classic “Shanny” passers, and not just because they have experience playing for the flat-billed playcaller. Cousins and Purdy just don’t have the physical tools to keep up with football demigods like Trevor Lawrence or Patrick Mahomes, so they need a tad more help from surrounding scheme and premier playmakers. They’re two of six quarterbacks with a passer rating of 100-plus this season but neither sniff subjective top-10 rankings provided by The Ringer.

It’s unfortunate that Justin Jefferson and Christian McCaffrey -- the true MVPs of their respective offenses -- are currently dealing with injuries. In the meantime, I plan to keep my eye on young stud receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Jordan Addison.

Here are our staff’s picks for tonight’s game.

This is now an open thread for the game. Let us know your MNF thoughts in the comments below!