Hello again sports fans. We’re back with another season of putting together a consensus power ranking for the Vikings each week, and with Week 2 now in the rear-view mirror, we’re off and running.
Let’s talk to it (rankings are hyperlinked for maximum clickage):
The Rankings
NFL.com — 19th (last week: 11th)
Key excerpt: “It has been a wild ride with McCarthy, and it’s tough to know how severe the injury is now, but it’s clear things haven’t gone according to plan early.”
The Athletic/New York Times — 22nd (last week: 12th)
Key excerpt: “McCarthy has taken the second-most time to throw of any QB in
the league, taking three seconds to get the ball out, and he was sacked six times because of it on Sunday night.”
ESPN.com — 20th (last week: 13th)
Key excerpt: “(McCarthy) has held the ball an average of 3.15 seconds before throwing, second highest in the NFL, and is tied for second in the league with four turnovers.”
Pro Football Talk — 21st (last week: 12th)
Key excerpt: “The air came out of the balloon quickly.”
CBS Sports (Pete Prisco) — 17th (last week: 14th)
Key excerpt: “J.J. McCarthy struggled in the loss to the Falcons, and now he is out for a bit with a high ankle sprain. It’s Carson Wentz time for probably a few weeks.”
Palm Beach Post (Joe Schad) — 10th (last week: 6th)
Key excerpt: “Key offseason addition: Jonathan Allen; lost to Falcons.”
The Score — 15th (last week: 7th)
Key excerpt: “The Vikings could be on the rise again before long, but Sunday night’s loss to the Falcons was particularly discouraging.”
NFL Trade Rumors — 19th (last week: 14th)
Key excerpt: “This Minnesota defense is having a lot of fun and causing plenty of havoc, but the offense with McCarthy at the helm could get almost nothing done against Atlanta.”
Sports Illustrated — 16th (last week: 11th)
Key excerpt: “Meanwhile, is anyone else kind of excited to see Carson Wentz in a Kevin O’Connell offense?”
USA Today (Nate Davis) — 22nd (last week: 15th)
Key excerpt: “With apologies to injured J.J. McCarthy, here’s a wild stat − backup Carson Wentz is likely about to become the first quarterback to start for six different teams over a six-season stretch in the Super Bowl era, which dates to 1966.”
Yahoo! Sports — 16th (last week: 8th)
Key excerpt: “What happens if Carson Wentz plays well with McCarthy out?”
New York Post — 19th (last week: 17th)
Key excerpt: None provided.
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Average ranking: 18.0 (216 ranking points/12 rankings)
Spare thoughts: I don’t think the Vikings are the 18th-best team in the NFL, but it’s hard to disagree with much of this based on how they played last week. I’m eager to see how the Vikings play under Wentz, and think/hope the team has a chance to move up in the 12th-14th range next week.
What do you think? Join the conversation below (and recommend other power rankings to add if you wish)!
