NFL odds: Vikings, Redskins take to the road as Week 3 underdogs

Minnesota Vikings and Washington Redskins among NFL Week 3 underdogs.

The Vikings are unbeaten through their first two games of the season, but they will be hard-pressed to remain perfect in Week 3 as they visit the defending NFC champion Panthers (1–1) as seven-point road underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.

The Vikings are coming off a 17–14 win over the Packers as one-point home underdogs in Week 2’s Sunday Night Football matchup but will take the field without Adrian Peterson, who will have surgery to repair the torn meniscus in his right knee.

The 31-year-old Peterson had rushed for just 50 yards on 31 carries (1.6 yards per carry) this season, but new quarterback Sam Bradford looked good in his debut against the Packers with 286 passing yards and two touchdowns, a promising sign for the offense going forward.

NFL Week 3 Power Rankings: Impressive Texans on the rise as Colts keep tumbling

The Panthers routed the 49ers 46–27 in Week 2 behind a monster effort from quarterback Cam Newton, who totaled 353 yards and four touchdowns through the air and another 37 yards on the ground. Newton bounced back from a rough performance in a 21–20 road loss to the Broncos in the NFL season opener to help Carolina cover as a 12.5-point favorite.

The Panthers have won 14 games in a row at home, covering the spread in seven straight at Bank of America Stadium, according to the OddsShark NFL Database.

Elsewhere in the NFC, the Giants (2–0) are also undefeated through two weeks and will be hosting the winless Redskins (0–2) as consensus 4.5-point home chalk on Sunday afternoon.

Fantasy football Week 3: Player rankings for every position

The Giants have won their first two games by a combined four points against the Cowboys and the Saints, and will be facing a Washington team that is on the brink of a nightmare 0–3 start after winning the NFC East last season.

The road has not been kind to the Redskins dating back to 2013, as they have gone 4–18 straight up in their last 22 games away from home to go along with an 8–14 mark against the spread. However, they have won their last three road games both straight up and against the spread.