Vikings Earn Exciting Label for Playoffs
The Minnesota Vikings haven’t created a magical season like this in a long time. Winning 14 of 16 games in a year that seemed to be a transition between the Kirk Cousins era and the J.J. McCarthy era has turned into one of the best chances to make a run at the Super Bowl this franchise has had in a while.
Vikings Earn Exciting Label for Playoffs
How are they doing it? The coaching staff is elite, the roster is stacked at key positions, and the quarterback has come to live in the best situation he’s been in.
Does anyone want to face a team that has won every game in over two months? Probably not.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell thinks they are THE team nobody wants to play in January.
At 14-3, the Vikings would be one of the more accomplished wild-card teams in history. Since the league expanded to 32 teams in 2002 (granted, we only recently entered the 17-game era), there hasn’t been a single 13-win team to make the playoffs as a wild card, let alone a 14-win squad. Just five teams in league history have posted a better winning percentage without winning their division, and the last of those teams was the 1999 Titans, who made it to the Super Bowl.
This is not one of the years in which the Vikings sneak into the playoffs by clinching a wild card with nine or ten wins. This operation has been too consistent throughout the season, with the only losses being by two points against the Lions and against a suddenly healthier Rams team on the road after a short week.
Barnwell continued by emphasizing that the team might feel inexperienced, but the Vikings are actually the oldest team in the league. Adding a bunch of veterans to fill holes on one-year contracts can pay dividends in high-leverage situations.
Another reason for Minnesota’s success is the team’s balance. Both sides of the ball can win games.
The defense is capable of taking over games. It leads the league in EPA per play after Burrow’s big game against the Broncos this week. There has been no sign of the late-season collapse Brian Flores’ unit experienced last December.
The Vikings are also one of the league’s healthiest defenses; the only defender they have on injured reserve is cornerback Mekhi Blackmon. With multiple impact pass rushers, a veteran secondary and a crafty architect in Flores, they can build game plans that attack the injury-induced weaknesses along offensive lines and within schemes on a week-to-week basis.
Brian Flores joined Kevin O’Connell’s staff in the 2023 offseason. He turned around the defense quickly by implementing his scheme, and in the 2024 offseason, he got the players he needed for it to work via free agency.
Barnwell then mentioned quarterback Darnold and his career revival.
And then there’s the guy under center. I’ve written plenty about Sam Darnold this season, but it’s clear what he’s capable of on his best days. Facing one of the league’s best defenses on Sunday, he was 33-of-43 for 377 yards with three touchdowns and a pick. Crucially, the Packers weren’t able to exploit his biggest weakness, as he was sacked only once all game. If the Vikings stay ahead of schedule and aren’t throwing to catch up, Darnold has been more than good enough to make opposing teams pay. He ranks 10th in the league in Total QBR during this winning streak.
Darnold has been better than anyone could’ve expected, producing 36 total touchdowns in one of the most prolific quarterback seasons Minnesota has ever seen. And after doing it for 16 games, it’s no longer a mystery if it’s real or just a good stretch. Darnold can play and he just needed a coaching staff to trust him and capable teammates to fully unlock his potential.
Barnwell concluded:
Great defense, excellent coaching and a quarterback who has been white-hot for stretches over the past two months? That’s a team nobody wants to play. The only thing that might keep the Vikings from earning this nod would be beating the Lions. And if they do win next week, would any team want to play a wounded, pissed-off, can-score-on-anybody Lions team in the postseason? I don’t think so.
A team that is peaking at the right time with a good offense and a good defense is a scary opponent in the postseason. The Vikings can clinch the first seed in the NFC by beating the Lions on Sunday and advance straight to the divisional round. Otherwise, they will take on the worst division winner in the first round of the playoffs.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt