NFL experts cannot agree on the Minnesota Vikings in latest power rankings

What are the 2024 Minnesota Vikings? Are they for real or is the 2-0 start a mirage? That is the biggest question heading into their week three matchup with the Houston Texans. Nobody knows quite what to think of them. Through two games, the process has been really good for the Vikings. Sam Darnold is […]

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer

Sep 18, 2024 7:00 AM EDT

What are the 2024 Minnesota Vikings? Are they for real or is the 2-0 start a mirage?

That is the biggest question heading into their week three matchup with the Houston Texans. Nobody knows quite what to think of them. Through two games, the process has been really good for the Vikings. Sam Darnold is having a renaissance season through two weeks and his process has been so good that it has many across the league believing in the Vikings.

However, there is far from a consensus on how good the Vikings are relative to the rest of the league and the latest NFL power rankings reflect that.

CBS Sports' Pete Prisco

Last week: 18
This week: 5

Sam Darnold is making plays, Brian Flores is doing a great job with the defense and Justin Jefferson is a game-wrecker. Combine that with Kevin O'Connell as head coach, and that's why they are 2-0.

ESPN's NFL Nation

Last week: 22
This week: 11

Most important backup/role player: WR Jalen Nailor

Nailor entered the season as the No. 3 receiver behind Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. While that means plenty of playing time for a team that uses "11" personnel about 65% of the time, it doesn't necessarily translate to targets. But Nailor has made the absolute most of the five passes thrown in his direction this season. Two have gone for touchdowns, a third went for 26 yards to convert a key third-and-8 against the 49ers and the fourth went for 18 yards. — Kevin Seifert

NFL.com's Eric Edholm

Last week: 20
This week: 15

This one was a coaching gem. Brian Flores' defense repeatedly hit Brock Purdy and sacked him six times, requiring the quarterback to complete lower-percentage passes just to keep the 49ers in the game. To Purdy's credit, he did connect on a few. But the Vikings were willing to take their chances because the pressure got home, so the approach paid off. Offensively, Kevin O'Connell called a game like a man who trusted his quarterback. The 2024 plan might been defenestrated when J.J. McCarthy suffered a season-ending injury in August, but Sam Darnold is throwing the ball like a confident passer right now. Despite the Vikings losing nearly half their offense by game's end, Darnold kept firing passes, completing 9 of 11 after halftime for 97 yards and a score, striking a great balance between aggressive and smart. He has a pick in each game, but looks nothing like the guy who was seeing ghosts a few years ago, and the Vikings are a surprising 2-0 because of it.

Sports Illustrated's Conor Orr

Last week: 18
This week: 9

Though it’s early, the Vikings have a legitimate top-10 passing offense and a defense that has allowed fewer points than only the Steelers, which played the Denver Broncos, and the Chargers, which has played both the Raiders and the Panthers. Brian Flores is carving a pathway back to a head coaching chair so far with a pair of memorable performances against great offensive minds.

Yahoo! Sports' Frank Schwab

Last week: 20
This week: 11

There aren't many better coaching staffs in the NFL than the one in Minnesota. Kevin O'Connell has Sam Darnold playing at a level he never consistently reached before. Brian Flores' defense held the 49ers to seven points through three quarters. Coaching matters, and that's why Minnesota is in first place in the NFC North.

The Sporting News' Vinnie Iyer

Last week: 19
This week: 13

The Vikings have an awesome attack playmaking defense under Brian Flores. That has made things easier for an offense in major transition with Sam Darnold at QB and some key injuries developing in the receiver corps. It will be difficult to sustain this, but doing it to the 49ers again made it a lot more legitimate.

The Athletic's Josh Kendall

Last week: 14
This week: 7

Only Randy Moss and Justin Jefferson have had at least 30 100-yard receiving games in the first five seasons of their career. Jefferson had 133 on Sunday on the strength of a 97-yard touchdown catch, but he left the game with what he called a “little” thigh bruise. Quarterback Sam Darnold is hoping it’s not serious. In another attempt to fulfill the promise that got him drafted No. 3 overall in 2018, Darnold is off to a good start. He’s fifth in the NFL in passer rating (111.8) and ninth in passing yards (476), according to TruMedia.

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio

Last week: 24
This week: 11

The worst team in the division on paper is all alone in first place.

Fox Sports' David Helman

Last week: 22
This week: 17

Don't take my word for it, just ask Brock Purdy. The 49ers' star quarterback told Minnesota defensive coordinator Brian Flores that his scheme is "crazy" after San Francisco managed to score just 17 points on Sunday. Yes, the Sam Darnold Reclamation Project is a fun story, but the Vikings defense looks dominant in the early going.