Sep 22, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones (33) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) against the Houston Texans in the first quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images.
The Minnesota Vikings own a 3-0 record heading into “Packer Week,” an unexpected development for the purple team.
The Vikings are straight cruising through three games, shocking the NFL masses and even the team’s fans.
And here’s why that’s happening. The reasons are ranked in ascending order (No. 1 = most important).
Minnesota has solidly defeated three opponents, especially last week with a win over the Super Bowl-contending Houston Texans. Unlike the 2022 season, the Vikings’ wins aren’t fluky or suspense-filled.
Typically, lopsided wins — sheer dominance — are the mark of an elite football team. Kevin O’Connell’s team has almost led cover to cover in three games this season.
Similar to No. 8, Minnesota has a +55 point differential, ranking third in the NFL behind the Buffalo Bills and New Orleans Saints. For years — five, in fact — the team’s fans have waited for it to step on an opponent’s neck, and the Vikings are finally doing it. In fact, before the win over New York in Week 1, Minnesota hadn’t beaten an opponent by 17+ points in five years.
The next milestone? Scoring 40 points in a game: the Vikings haven’t done that since 2019 (a game against the Miami Dolphins).
Minnesota ranks seventh in redzone touchdown percentage on offense and 10th on defense per the same metric. On both sides of the ball, the organization is flexing in crunchtime down inside the 20s.
During the Zimmer era, offensive redzone efficiency was a staple, but it tailed off last year. Now, it’s back.
On 3rd Downs, the Vikings’ offense passes the eye test, and the numbers confirm. It ranks third leaguewide on 3rd Down, serving as one of the chief reasons blowouts are possible. Unlike 2022 or 2023, the team isn’t encountering 3-and-Outs as frequently.
On defense, Minnesota ranks 10th per 3rd Down percentage. Not bad. There is balance.
This stat here arguably sunk the 2023 Vikings. They ranked second-to-last per turnover differential last season, meaning when Nick Mullens was delivering interceptions to opponents and other players were firing up opening-drive fumbles, the defense wasn’t forcing enough turnovers to compensate.
That’s different in 2024: Minnesota ranks sixth in turnover differential.
Kevin O’Connell has a 20-0 record when Minnesota wins the turnover battle or breaks even.
Minnesota leads the pack on defense, outpacing 31 teams per DVOA. All facets of the defense are cooking; there are no deficiencies.
Of course, Flores’ defense ranked tops in the NFL between Weeks 4 and 14 last season before cooling off in December and January. Folks will now hope a serious regression doesn’t set in.
During O’Connell’s first two seasons, he called plays like a former quarterback, dropping back to pass well over 60% of the time. That’s great — while playing Madden.
Heading into Week 4, the Vikings rank 19th in pass playcall percentage and 14th via rushing plays. Finally, after several requests by the team’s onlookers, Minnesota is running the ball and doing it effectively. No more are the pass-happy games where Kirk Cousins or Sam Darnold throw 45+ times.
It’s paid off. Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler’s efforts enabled the Vikings to have one of the sport’s most fluid offenses.
T.J. Hockenon is out? No big deal. Jordan Addison misses a couple of games? No big deal. Oh, hey — where’s Dallas Turner? It doesn’t matter. How about Ivan Pace Jr.? Where’s he? He’s hurt, but they have Kamu Grugier-Hill.
General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah carefully manufactured the roster for three offseasons, and his “competitive rebuild” is paying off in real time. The depth chart is deep. Really deep.
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.