The Minnesota Vikings have been one of the biggest shocks in the NFL to start the 2024 season. Minnesota easily defeated the Houston Texans on Sunday by a final score of 34-7.
The Vikings are 3-0 to start the 2024 season. Minnesota will be going on the road to face the Green Bay Packers (2-1) next Sunday. A lot of people did not expect the Minnesota Vikings to have this start.
NFL Insider Discusses If the Minnesota Vikings Are Super Bowl Contenders Or Not
No one expected the Vikings to be in the playoffs this season after they lost quarterback Kirk Cousins to the Atlanta Falcons this offseason in free agency. A lot of people predicted Minnesota to be in last place in the NFC North this season because of the Detroit Lions, the Green Bay Packers, and the Chicago Bears.
Ted Nguyen of The Athletic and two other staff members were answering questions from the Week 3 games of the 2024 NFL season. One of the questions they asked after the Minnesota Vikings win over the Houston Texans was as follows:
“Is it time to re-think the Vikings as a Super Bowl contender?”
Nguyen followed up with this response:
“Flores’ defense has a boom-or-bust nature and the Vikings still live on aggression and causing confusion, but it’s hard to deny how good they’ve been. Last week, they shut down the 49ers and this week, they had Stroud, who is normally very good against the blitz, completely flustered. This is Stroud’s first multi-interception game in which he was also sacked four times in his career.
The Vikings’ offense is explosive on the ground and through the air — sixth in explosive play rate — but the old careless Sam Darnold does show up from time to time. Kevin O’Connell has been excellent calling plays. I think they have a formula to win a lot of games and maybe make noise in the playoffs, but until we see Darnold string together some elite games, it’s hard to say that they’re Super Bowl contenders. And that’s not a knock on the Vikings and their excellent start to the season, but it will take more to put them in that tier.”
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores deserves a ton of credit for having the defense playing well early on in the season. Head coach Kevin O’Connell also deserves a lot of praise and could be one of the early favorites for the Coach Of the Year Award.
Sam Darnold Playing Well Early
Darnold is in his seventh NFL season. He has been bouncing from place to place, but it appears as if Sam Darnold has found a home with the Minnesota Vikings. He has completed 67.9% of his passes for 657 yards, eight touchdowns, and two interceptions.
On Monday, he will also go for an MRI on his knee. Minnesota can not afford to lose him. They are not a Super Bowl contender yet, but if they continue to keep on winning with Darnold, then there may need to be a different conversation about this football team.
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