The Odds of Vikings Making the Playoffs | Week 7

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Each week, VikingsTerritory tracks the Minnesota Vikings’ odds of reaching the postseason, starting with pre-Week 1 all the way to Week 18.

The Odds of Vikings Making the Playoffs | Week 7

Various probability sources are tracked and centralized in one spot for reference.

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This is the Vikings’ probability meter after the Week 5 win over the New York Jets.

DVOA = 88.8%

playoffs
Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) throws the ball under pressure from Minnesota defensive end Jonathan Bullard (90) on Sunday, September 29, 2024, at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. The Vikings won the game, 31-29. Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin.

Last week, DVOA estimated the Vikings playoff odds at 88.8%.

The Detroit Lions were supposed to win the division heading into Week 1 — that was the forecast for the entire offseason and summer — but Minnesota did itself an enormous favor out of the gate by defeating the Giants, 49ers, Texans, Packers, and Jets.

If the Vikings lose on Sunday, this percentage will probably dip into the 80s.

Image Courtesy of FTNFantasy.com

Beating Detroit on Sunday would put Minnesota firmly in the driver’s seat to win for the NFC North throughout the whole season and perhaps nibble at homefield advantage throughout the postseason.

Sportsbooks = 90.9%

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When the regular season kicked off, most credible sportsbooks settled around a +250 moneyline for Minnesota to visit the postseason, which translated to 28.7%. That percentage and moneyline improved to 41.6%, though, after Week 1, when Minnesota crushed the New York Giants.

Now, it resides at -1000 (90.9%) following the win over New York.

Minnesota can drive the percentage even higher on Sunday with a win over the Lions, and oddsmakers expect the Vikings to prevail by a point or two.

PlayoffStatus.com = 96.0%

Shaun Brooks-Imagn Images.

This site takes a more rudimentary approach to the calculation, not necessarily factoring in predictive performance. But in the interest of fairness and sheer math, PlayoffStatus.com was included for a broader view.

Power Rankings Guru = 86.2%

Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images.

This ranking tool defines itself as follows: “Our NFL playoff probabilities are calculated by averaging predictions from numberFireESPN, and Team Rankings. The table above shows the preseason and current playoff probabilities for each team. The change in these two predictions is also shown.”


The Vikings haven’t started a season this hot in eight years, and weirdly, they have the same bye week as that season. Of course, folks hope 2024 doesn’t wholly mirror that campaign because 2016 started 5-0 and finished 3-8 in the final 11 games, missing the playoffs altogether.

Minnesota has a 5-0 record to Detroit’s 4-1 — making the matchup the best in series history per midseason win percentage.


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 MIN 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.