Cautiously Optimistic: These Vikings Aren’t a Fluke

The life of a Minnesota Vikings fan is one of pessimism and heartbreak. We’ve seen this franchise reach the highest of highs, only to hurtle back to Earth under the weight of grand expectations.

There was the 1998 disaster, the 2009 collapse, and the gut-wrenching loss in last year’s playoffs. Rooting this team on week-in and week-out isn’t an easy task; the Vikings always find a way to keep games closer than they should be. And they always find ways to lose games they shouldn’t lose, which seems to be a common theme, no matter your age.

But this year feels different. Mike Zimmer’s team isn’t crumbling under increasingly troublesome odds, including the losses of Adrian Peterson, Teddy Bridgewater, Matt Kalil, and Andre Smith. They’re thriving, enjoying a 5-0 run to start the season behind arguably the NFL’s best defense. The offense, for all its losses, is holding its own, partly because newcomer Sam Bradford is playing at MVP levels.

We’ve used this bye week to contemplate Minnesota’s immediate future; can they sustain this success, or is there impending doom ahead for what many consider the NFL’s best team? I asked the team at Vikings Territory — and Viking’s Corner’s Daniel House — to assess the authenticity of this surprising run.

Are the Vikings for real, or is this 5-0 streak a fluke?

Adam Warwas

When something is tough to accomplish, as five consecutive wins in the NFL certainly is, people can be quick to label successes a fluke. However, I firmly believe this is not the case with the Vikings convincing start. Their accomplishments have been earned, they’ve had to work hard to overcome adversities, but there is nothing fluky about these five wins.

Brett Anderson

Before giving my answer regarding the legitimacy of the Vikings current undefeated record, I’d like to give some background on myself: I am a pessimist, through and through. The type of person who believes to their core that we, Vikings fans, will never have nice things. That we are forever damned to stew in football purgatory – always good enough, but never great enough to bring home a championship.

Even on days like this past Sunday where the Vikings put a beating on the Houston Texans, I still find myself watching at times with one eye open. After the Vikings went up 24-0 in the second quarter, I started to feel a foreign feeling of confidence that I had to force myself to immediately quell. “This is the Vikings, Brett,” I remind myself. “This thing isn’t over yet.”

And with all that being said, I still believe that this Vikings team’s 5-0 record is 100% real.

There has been absolutely nothing fluky about the Vikings incredible start to this season. They are doing it with an elite defense (I’m ready to say the best in the NFL) and efficient play from their offense that limits (or this season, eliminates) turnovers. None of their wins have come against the league’s worst, like the Browns, 49ers, etc. They’ve played multiple primetime games and been on some of the biggest stages this season for the whole world to see. (A situation in Vikings past they have crumbled under).

But most importantly, and this is probably the biggest reason we should all start to believe in this team, Mike Zimmer is one of the best head coaches in the NFL. With Zimmer at the helm, I will continue to try and push aside that disbelief and doubt, and have hope that the Vikings can continue this incredible streak they’re on and maybe even go all the way.

…Until the next heartbreak, anyway.

Sam Neumann

Yes, the quarterback play will make a slight regression at some point, but there’s no reason to think it will come back all the way to the mean. And championship teams are built on defense, one phase of the Vikings that is definitely not a fluke. Combine a top-tier defense with functional offense and vastly underrated special teams—a crucial and often overlooked element to winning late in the season and in the playoffs—and we have ourselves a contender, folks. No amount of Minnesota pessimism can deny that.

Adam Patrick

Yes the Vikings are for real. It’s easy to say that when we cover the team, but I would be the first one in line to say the Vikings were a fluke if they truly were. But they are not. They are playing smart football, beating good teams, and have arguably the best defense in the NFL. However, the only thing that could prevent them from having a strong run in the playoffs would be an injury to Sam Bradford. Hate to bring it up, but given his history it still remains a possibility.

Brent LaBathe

It’s real baby. There is something about this team – something you can’t really put your finger on. Is it the front office and coaching that has navigated this series of injuries flawlessly? Is it team chemistry and a collection of guys who sacrifice personal statistics for the better good and a team win? Is youthful talent that seems to be simply catching the league at the right time? Truth is, it’s all of the above plus some of that magic you need to make a deep run in the playoffs.

The key will be coming out of the bye week fast. The defense needs to continue to play out of this world and Sam Bradford needs to continue to be surgical in a new spread offense, but we can ride the defense for a long time. Although I don’t expect the Vikings to be perfect in the back half of the season, they are too technically sound to falter for too long. I once thought this team would mirror last year’s record of 11-5, I now think 13-14 wins is a very real possibility.

Carl Knowles

Sam Bradford is having a career year and a great defense is plus-12 in turnover margin, which has been a pleasant and somewhat unexpected recipe for success. As dominant as the Vikings have been, it’s still doubtful they will remain undefeated throughout the season. However, Bradford and this stout defense can certainly sustain a high level of play and prove capable of making a deep playoff run. This is a well coached, hungry, hard working team that isn’t lacking in talent and fully deserving of the success that they have had.

Daniel House, Vikings Corner

The Vikings’ 5-0 start is far from a fluke. They are winning games against quality opponents and have done it all with a high amount of adversity resting on their shoulders.

This defense is dominant. The likes of Aaron Rodgers, Cam Newton, and Eli Manning combined for five interceptions and one touchdown against the Vikings’ defense. I’m going to make the case this defense is one of the best in team history. At least since the Purple People Eaters. Heck, they could be top-ten in league history. They held the trio of Kelvin Benjamin, Odell Beckham Jr., and DeAndre Hopkins to a combined 6 catches, 46 yards, and a touchdown. The Vikings lead the league in turnover ratio (plus-10), points allowed per game (12.6), opponent yards per play (4.4), passer rating against (65.3%), and sacks (19).

This defense is dominant and it isn’t going to change. Mike Zimmer is doing an amazing job of scheming for other offensive units. The amount of disguises and different packages he has unleashed is incredible. They’ve done it all with adversity on the offensive side of the ball. Teddy Bridgewater, Adrian Peterson, Matt Kalil, and Andre Smith all went down and the Minnesota offense didn’t miss a beat. This is because of the depth this organization has built on the roster.

GM Rick Spielman made the bold move to trade for Sam Bradford because he knew how special this defense could be. He wasn’t going to settle for mediocrity this season. Bradford has played unreal and isn’t making mistakes. He is distributing the ball to all of his targets and the Vikings are only the 2^nd team in 83 years to start 5-0 without throwing an interception. The offensive line and running game needs to get better if the Vikings want to see sustained success. Hopefully, the signing of Jake Long and the bye week will solve the problems they have faced up front.

With an elite defense like the Vikings have and a serviceable offense that isn’t making mistakes, the sky is really the limit. At this point, it comes down to preparing each week and winning as many ball games as you can. The Vikings have never had a dominant defense, a talented coaching staff, and so much team chemistry all together at once. The answer is easy: the Vikings aren’t a fluke; they are the best team in football.