Believe it or not, there are just three weeks left of the 2024 NFL regular season. It feels like just yesterday we were gearing up for the kickoff of our first game of the season, having heated debates on whether or not Sam Darnold could be a competent quarterback and if the Minnesota Vikings would regret letting Kirk Cousins go to the Falcons.
Now we’re sitting here with the Vikings at 12-2, in control of their own destiny, and Sam Darnold had a career resurgence that’s likely to earn him a major payday in the off-season. And yet, even with all that success, the Vikings aren’t sitting atop many — if any — power rankings heading into Week 16.
Such is the case with the latest ESPN power rankings, which have the Vikings unchanged from their spot at the end of last week. Despite Minnesota getting a convincing win on Monday Night Football and the Detroit Lions dropping their game against the Buffalo Bills, the Vikings remain in ESPN’s fifth spot overall.
That ranking has the Vikings sitting behind both the aforementioned Bills and Lions, along with the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. Even with a win this week over the Seattle Seahawks, that ranking isn’t likely to change unless there are some upsets this week.
However, Minnesota closes out their season with games against the Green Bay Packers and the Lions, which gives them the chance to climb the ranks if they can take care of business.
For now, though, a top-five ranking is pretty good, considering where most thought the Vikings would be at this point before the season started.