The Minnesota Vikings are 2-0. Yes, those Minnesota Vikings. You know, the team everyone predicted to finish last in the NFC North, the organization whose life was gone after Kirk Cousins left, who were going to have to punt on the season until J.
J. McCarthy was ready to be the starter. In two weeks full of surprises Minnesota might be the most stunning, and yet we also shouldn’t really be mystified by their start.
When you get down to brass tacks there’s nothing shocking about why the Vikings are good: They’re well coached on offense, have a solid lines on both sides of the ball, the best wide receiver in the NFL, and a creative defensive coordinator who is able to accentuate the strengths of his talent while masking its deficiencies. Beating the Giants in Week 1 should be a given for most teams, but to hand the 49ers an L is another thing entirely. At the very least these back-to-back wins have dispelled the preseason narrative surrounding the Vikings that this team would be cooked without Kirk Cousins under center.
Truth be told, they’ve more or less been exactly the same. They’re going to perform on offense, be aggressive on defense, and take every opponent they face down to the wire (for better and worse). Related The Vikings have the clearest identity of any building team in the NFL.
Offensively the team is going to establish the run, and punctuate it with massive passing plays. Hardly revolutionary stuff, but it’s working. On defense the team’s entire goa.