The Kansas City Chiefs ended the 2022 season with the glory, downing the Philadelphia Eagles in a thriller down in Phoenix and winning the franchise’s fourth Super Bowl by a score of 38-35.
Dec 24, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell looks on during the third quarter against the New York Giants at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports.
Vikings Get Embarrassing Treatment in Sporting News 2023 Power Rankings
And because NFL media never sleeps, post-2022 but pre-2023 power rankings were dropped by various outlets the day after. Some iterations pegged the 2023 Vikings as a Top 12 team, while others weren’t convinced.
Nov 6, 2022; Landover, Maryland, USA; Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith (22) celebrates with teammates after intercepting a pass against the Washington Commanders during the second half at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports.
Sporting News isn’t high on the Vikings 2023 trajectory, evidenced by its No. 20 ranking for Minnesota. That’s right, SN ranked teams like the Denver Broncos, New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, etc., decisively higher than the Vikings and labeled Minnesota as the league’s 13th-worst team heading into next season.
Yes, this applies to the same Vikings team that finished the 2022 season with a 13-4 record. SN’s Vinnie Iyer elaborated, “Everyone knows the Vikings defied the statistics and the odds to be a big-time winning team last season, leading them to be exposed right away in the playoffs. Their defense rebuild is still in progress and might be getting time to veer away from Kirk Cousins’ floor and go for higher upside to boost Justin Jefferson and the rest of their offense.”
Dec 17, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) and guard Austin Schlottmann (65) warm up before the game against the Indianapolis Colts at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.
Most of the Vikings shine was smeared by an early playoff exit, courtesy of the New York Giants. Minnesota won the NFC North for the first time since 2017, tabulated an 11-0 regular season record in one-score games, and then flopped at home to the Giants — who were not a very formidable team. Philadelphia thoroughly trounced New York one week after its triumph at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Nov 20, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell comes off the field after the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.
Vikings fans should get used to this “they’re not very good” stance surrounding the club. Minnesota was the first team in NFL history to win 13 games in a season while showcasing an upside-down point differential. Even with 13 wins to just four losses, opponents cumulatively outscored the Vikings by three points.
In the next seven months, that statistic will translate to NFL talking heads picking Minnesota as a trendy “regression” candidate. The theory will suggest that Kevin O’Connell’s team massively overachieved in his first year as head coach and that the bottom could fall out in 2023. That narrative will be prevalent, so now’s a decent time to prepare for it.
The Vikings will also play a first-place schedule next autumn. In 2022, they encountered a somewhat easy schedule, including nine home games, seven true road games, and a neutral-site showdown across the pond in London. Next year’s script is flipped, and Minnesota will play eight home games and nine on the road, plus a first-place slate of opponents.
Minnesota has +5000 odds to win Super Bowl LVIII, the same probability afforded to the New Orleans Saints and Tom Brady-less Tampa Bay Buccaneers.