Hey, you! Yeah…you over there! You like the Minnesota Vikings, right? Yeah, I know, clicking on this article was kind of a giveaway, but I wanted to tell you something.
You see, the Vikings are a team with a lot of flaws. Their opponents are handing them victories left and right. You might think the Vikings are lucky, but there may be something else you might not realize.
They might be a good team.
Before you yell and scream on every social media platform, we need to set some parameters. Yes, the Vikings have some things to work on, but there are a lot of things that are heading in the right direction.
Take Sunday’s win over the Arizona Cardinals. Sure, it got closer than it should have been, but the Vikings did everything that shows a team starting to hit its stride.
Look no further than the ground game. Through the first six games, Dalvin Cook looked like something between late-career Adrian Peterson and the fantasy football running back you were thinking about dropping. With every two- and three-yard run, you wondered if he had lost a step. Then he’d hit a 50-yarder, and everything would be okay.
Cook didn’t have the big run on Sunday afternoon, but he looked like a consistent player. He notched his first 100-yard game of the season, and he wasn’t alone. Alexander Mattison ran the ball five times for 40 yards and a touchdown, and Kirk Cousins – yes, KIRK COUSINS – had a 17-yard rushing touchdown.
Shhh! You have to be quiet, remember?
These runs weren’t jaw-dropping highlights, but they served a purpose. The Vikings didn’t have a single drive of three plays or fewer in the first half, which helped their defense make the big play when they needed it.
Let’s talk about the defense, shall we? Many fans are frustrated with them because they rank 14th in yards allowed and points per game, but they’re making the big plays when they need to most.
After the Vikings took a 21-17 lead on Mattison’s touchdown in the third quarter, Harrison Smith intercepted Kyler Murray on the first play of the ensuing drive. Minnesota answered the call of duty with a Cook touchdown, giving them a 28-17 lead.
The Vikings gave up a touchdown on Arizona’s next drive, and an Isaiah Simmons strip-sack gave Arizona the ball at the Vikings’ 24-yard line. In past years, this would mean an imminent touchdown, but the defense made the stop and held the Cardinals to a field goal.
The defense was tested again late in the fourth quarter while the Vikings held onto a 34-26 lead. According to Pro Football Focus, Jordan Hicks, who has been graded as the Vikings’ worst linebacker, came up in the clutch, stopping Eno Benjamin on a fourth-and-1 that basically secured the victory.
It would be nice if the defense played in the same dominant fashion as they did in 2017 or 2018, but this isn’t that unit. Instead, it’s an opportunistic group that believes it can make a big play, which hasn’t happened in the past couple of seasons.
I know what you’re thinking: The Vikings have a kicker problem. They probably have to beat the Philadelphia Eagles on the road to go to the Super Bowl. Oh, and 38-7. Life sucks. Eat Arby’s.
But think about where the Vikings were a year ago. It was Halloween night at U.S. Bank Stadium. Minnesota was coming off their bye week and had clawed their way back to .500. Their opponent was the Dallas Cowboys, who were without Pro Bowl quarterback Dak Prescott.
Everything should have amounted to a Vikings victory that night, but Cooper Rush had other ideas. The former UDFA threw for 325 yards and two touchdowns – including a go-ahead score to Amari Cooper with 51 seconds to go – as the Vikings suffered a 20-16 loss.
At that moment, the Vikings didn’t feel like an ascending team. Hell, they didn’t feel like they were going anywhere. The rest of the season felt like a slow line of cars heading to a cemetery or at least a march toward an 8-9 record.
This feels different. Kevin O’Connell went into the locker room and admitted he needs to work on some things along with the team, but they’re heading in the right direction.
That’s something no other team can say in the NFC North. The Vikings have a 3.5-game lead over the Green Bay Packers. The Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions are non-factors. With the division virtually sewn up, the Vikings will at least get a home playoff game – their first since some game back in 2017.
The other thing going in their favor? The rest of the conference. The New York Giants (6-1) and Dallas Cowboys (5-2) are formidable foes, but they’ve been relegated to wild card spots. The Seattle Seahawks are 1.5 back of the second-seeded Vikings, and the NFC South is likely to be locked into the fourth seed.
If this keeps up, the Vikings might not have one home playoff game. They might have two home playoff games.
Even if the Vikings don’t get home-field advantage, they’re the perfect team to bring their rabbit’s foot to Philadelphia. Will fans remember the 24-7 beating from Week 2? Yes. Will they hear 38-7 the week up to the game? Definitely. Does it beat praying for the Vikings to get to .500? Absolutely.
Shhh! Don’t get too excited!
The end will probably be another punch to the gut, but how much will that really hurt us? The Vikings were a potential dynasty in the 1970s, only to lose in the Super Bowl four times. The 1998 and 2009 Vikings were legitimately good teams. The 2017 Vikings had some luck, but they had the league’s No. 1 defense. To compare this team, you might have to go back to the 1987 Vikings, who emerged from the player’s strike to reach the NFC Championship game.
These Vikings might actually be good. But until we know, it’s best to sit back and enjoy the ride.
