The 2022 Vikings, According to All National Power Rankings Week 17
Dustin Baker
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Each week, VikingsTerritory catalogs the Minnesota Vikings placement in all national power rankings. Eleven sources are vetted, detailed, and plopped here for reference.
The Vikings won another squeaker in Week 16, outlasting the New York Giants, thanks to a 61-yard walkoff field goal by Greg Joseph. Kirk Cousins delivered 3 touchdown passes on 299 passing yards while Minnesota forced an interception, fumble, and blocked punt.
Minnesota has around 19:1 odds of winning the Super Bowl in 2022. Last week, those odds were 21:1, so the win over the Giants moved the needle a bit.
Per EPA/Play, the Vikings own the NFL’s 17th-best offense and 14th-best defense after Week 16. Those certainly aren’t the metrics a Super Bowl-contending team produces, but the Vikings have two weeks to improve.
The 2022 Vikings, According to All National Power Rankings Week 17
[format = ranking entity: power ranking position (variation from last week)]
- CBS Sports: 6th (no change)
- Sporting News: 7th (-1)
- ESPN: 7th (no change)
- Bleacher Report: 7th (no change)
- Pro Football Talk: 7th (no change)
- The Score: 7th (+2)
- Yahoo Sports: 7th (no change)
- NFL.com: 7th (+1)
- USA Today: 7th (+1)
- Pro Football Network: 7th (+1)
- FiveThirtyEight: 8th (no change)
The national average of these totals is 7.0. The world believes the Vikings are about the NFL’s seventh-best team. Last week, Minnesota was around seventh. Nothing changed.
Vinnie Iyer from Sporting News wrote about the Vikings, “The Vikings aren’t lucky. They put themselves in position to win with good offensive play design that involves top skill players Justin Jefferson, Dalvin Cook and T.J. Hockenson at the right times. They also proved defense and special teams can be a factor when needed.”
Pete Prisco at CBS Sports mentioned, “At 12-3, they are pushing to be the second seed. But if the Eagles were to stumble twice, they could end up with the top seed if they won out.”
Bleacher Report noted the Vikings rest-of-season capabilities, “The question now is whether a Vikings team that lives dangerously with such regularity and sports the worst pass defense in the league can continue pulling rabbits from hats in the playoffs.”
The Vikings are three-point underdogs to beat the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in Week 17. The Packers have a 27% chance of reaching the playoffs after downing the Miami Dolphins on Christmas Day. Green Bay must beat the Vikings and Lions while hoping the Washington Commanders lose one game versus the Browns or Cowboys.
The Vikings have defeated the Packers three consecutive times with Kirk Cousins as the QB1.
Kirk Cousins Is Getting Blasted
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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