Popular Pundit Says Vikings Will Win Super Bowl
Nobody on this globe believed the Minnesota Vikings would be Super Bowl contenders by the end of September, but that’s why that very globe rotates.
Popular Pundit Says Vikings Will Win Super Bowl
Outspoken NFL pundit Colin Cowherd saw enough after Minnesota systematically dismantled the Houston Texans on Sunday, claiming he knew how quarterback Sam Darnold’s blossoming storybook season would end — a Lombardi Trophy on February 9th.
“Last couple of weeks I’ve been saying, ‘I don’t know how long this Sam Darnold thing is going to last?’ But I do now. Until February 9th. That’s the date of the Super Bowl. Yeah, I said it. Yeah, I said it. Four touchdowns no picks,” Cowherd said in a video posted to X on Sunday afternoon.
The Vikings thoroughly creamed the Texans in Week 3, running up the score to the tune of 34-7 and making the Texans’ vaunted offense look foolish and clueless. On the offensive side of operations, the aforementioned Darnold threw four touchdowns and no interceptions, echoed by Cowherd in the X video.
Through three games, the Vikings’ defense ranks first in the NFL per DVOA and has registered at least five sacks in each game since Week 1. No team has accomplished the feat to start a season since 2001. The offense is purring thanks to the free-agent acquisition of Aaron Jones from the Green Bay Packers, and Kevin O’Connell’s offense is no longer one-dimensional. Jones averages 6 yards every time his fingers touch 2024 pigskin.
And, of course, Darnold’s reclamation story is totally thriving through three games. He leads the NFL in touchdown passes and has helped the Vikings avoid mid-game ruts that plagued the 2022 and 2023 campaigns.
Scaled to a full 17-game season, Darnold is on pace for this 2024 stat line:
- 3,723 Passing Yards
- 45 TD Passes
- 11 INTs
To be sure, the main concern about Darnold — if any — is sustainability. How long can he preserve this kindling stardom? He’s never achieved such consistency in the past. Vikings fans watched last year as journeyman passer Joshua Dobbs set the world on fire for two games and then turned into a pumpkin.
Additionally, there’s a small injury concern for Darnold — his knee. Former Vikings outside linebacker Danielle Hunter, who plays for the Houston Texans, rolled into Darnold’s leg on Sunday during his team’s 34-7 loss to Minnesota, sidelining Darnold for a play and generating early-week suspense about his short- and long-term status.
Darnold will have an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of the injury, if any. Late Sunday afternoon, he mentioned about his knee, “It’s good, and that’s as much as I’m gonna say about that.”
Cowherd must believe Darnold’s injury is nothingburger because he’s picking the purple team to win its first-ever Super Bowl. The team has tried 63 times to no avail.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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