NFL Power Rankings: One NFL analyst still doesn't believe in the Vikings for a bizarre reason
The Minnesota Vikings are 11-2 and one of the best teams in the National Football League. Their 42-21 win over the Atlanta Falcons showed that the Vikings could put away a good football team and do so with gusto, as they ran off 21 consecutive points to win the game by three scores. That was […]
The Minnesota Vikings are 11-2 and one of the best teams in the National Football League.
Their 42-21 win over the Atlanta Falcons showed that the Vikings could put away a good football team and do so with gusto, as they ran off 21 consecutive points to win the game by three scores. That was a necessary thing for the Vikings if they want to truly be among the elite teams in the NFL.
The latest power rankings have the Vikings in the top five with just one outlier that may never believe in them.
ESPN's NFL Nation
Last week: 6
This week: 5
Most shocking ranking: 17th in yards allowed per game
The Vikings' defense ranks No. 1 in efficiency and No. 2 in expected points added, but it allows 337.8 yards per game. In fact, over the past three weeks, Vikings opponents have averaged 433.3 yards. Largely, that tells us there are holes in the Vikings' zone coverages that can be exploited. But Minnesota has limited scoring to 18.5 points per game, sixth in the NFL, in part because it has the second-most takeaways (27). — Kevin Seifert
Yahoo! Sports' Frank Schwab
Last week: 5
This week: 5
The Vikings still have hard games left against the Lions, Packers and Seahawks, and the Bears might not be a pushover. Still, they keep winning. A Week 18 game between a 14-2 Vikings team and 14-2 Lions team for the NFC North title isn't a stretch.
CBS Sports' Pete Prisco
Last week: 5
This week: 4
After a home game with the Bears, their schedule toughens down the stretch with a road game at Seattle, a home game against the Packers and a road game at the Lions. We will find out a lot about this team in the final four games.
NFL.com's Eric Edholm
Last week: 5
This week: 5
The Vikings have run their winning streak to six and have found a few new gears on offense the past handful of games. Sam Darnold threw for a career-best five TDs against the Falcons, the run game bounced back in a big way, and the Vikings had their first turnover-free game since October. It’s to the point where we should be thinking about the proper Darnold questions now. "Can he perform in the playoffs?" has turned into "Is Darnold in the MVP race?" Another shift to consider: pondering not how much money Darnold can make as a free agent, but whether the Vikings should try to keep him for 2025, with J.J. McCarthy coming off meniscus surgery. That last one is for down the road, though. Right now, the Vikings are starting to roll, beginning to resemble the powerhouse suggested by their gaudy 11-2 record. The 13-4 season in 2022 might have felt like fool’s gold, but this one is passing the purity test.
USA Today's Nate Davis
Last week: 9
This week: 5
They're 11-2. Seriously, they're 11-2 and have just as good a shot as the Eagles of stealing home-field advantage from Detroit. Coming off a career performance Sunday (347 yards, 5 TDs passing), the future of QB Sam Darnold, who's on an expiring contract, is going to be one of the offseason's most fascinating topics.
The Sporting News' Vinnie Iyer
Last week: 5
This week: 3
The Vikings have been questioned for some holes in their defense and having limited balance to help them on offense. But when they're rolling with Sam Darnold and his weapons in the passing game and coming up with key pressure and turnovers, they can beat anybody.
Bleacher Report's NFL Staff
Last week: 5
This week: 4
The Detroit Lions aren't giving up ground in the NFC North, and they continue to overshadow the Vikings. However, Minnesota is among the handful of NFC teams that could realistically make a push to the Super Bowl.
The Vikings don't have a shut-down defense, but a solid front, a strong pass rush, and a penchant for turnovers make it good enough. Sam Darnold appears to be over his midseason slump, and he has an embarrassment of playmakers at his disposal. And the No. 1 seed still isn't out of the question for Minnesota. — Kristopher Knox
Sports Illustrated's Conor Orr
Last week: 4
This week: 4
I could tell this was going to be a Sam Darnold heater game from his first completion to Jordan Addison, which was a beautiful second-read throw. After Justin Jefferson was covered coming off pre-snap motion, Darnold went second level and hit Addison as he was fading out of bounds. The Vikings’ offensive line should be thankful; they were heavily vulnerable in the early portions of this game, giving up some big sacks on three and four-man pressures that were as simple as a guy getting beat.
The Ringer's Diante Lee
Last week: 8
This week: 7
I don’t (totally) mean to be a wet blanket about Sam Darnold’s five-touchdown, 347-passing-yard performance against Atlanta, but you couldn’t have designed better conditions for him and this offense. Playing indoors, against an awful pass rush and shoddy secondary, and with the support of his run game, Darnold was operating on the easiest difficulty level possible.It seemed like every play-action pass led to a big gain, and the receiving corps was running uncovered downfield for the majority of the contest. While there’s something to be said for the strides Darnold has taken as a decision-maker and passer, especially when it results in gaudy numbers against a fringe playoff opponent, I’m not certain this team got any closer to the tier of true contenders on Sunday.
Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio
Last week: 5
This week: 4
They could end up being a 14-win wild-card team.
The Athletic's Josh Kendall
Last week: 5
This week: 3
Breakout player: Running back Aaron Jones.
Calling the eighth-year pro a breakout player is stretching the term, but the impact players in Minnesota are all known names, and Jones has added an element to his game this season. He has 37 catches for 302 yards to go with 893 rushing yards, already his second-best total since 2020. He averaged 5.6 yards per carry against the Falcons on Sunday.
The Vikings have a quarterback problem that the NFL hasn’t seen in more than 20 years
The 2024 Vikings are just like the 2004 Chargers
Vikings can secure their future with Sam Darnold by making a move he probably won’t like
The Vikings would behoove themselves to make this move
