Schedule Gets Tougher for Unbeaten Vikings, Starting in Detroit

The Minnesota Vikings are now the only NFL team keeping the 1972 Miami Dolphins on edge this year.

Legend has it that Dolphins alumni from that 17–0 championship squad pop champagne each year when the last unbeaten team falls. While NFL.com confirmed in 2022 that those celebrations don’t actually happen, any members of the 1972 Dolphins are no doubt waiting for the first Vikings loss.

While the last unbeaten to fall normally happens within the first 10 weeks of any given season, it came much later in 2007. That’s when the New England Patriots threatened to join the Dolphins with an unbeaten record going into the Super Bowl before an epic upset.

Minnesota improved to 6–0 on Sunday with a 16–10 win over the Indianapolis Colts while two fellow unbeatens fell for the first time in Week 7. Both the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs lost, leaving the Vikings, the least likely of the three, to stay unbeaten.

San Francisco and Kansas City have reached Super Bowls in recent years, but the Vikings have been up and down with a carousel of quarterbacks. This year’s Vikings have struggled offensively amid the latest turn of the carousel with Kyler Murray adapting to his new team.

Minnesota’s defense has been the story of the strong start, allowing just 12.3 points per game. That has drawn comparisons to past elite defenses such as the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, which allowed 10.3 points per game and won a Super Bowl.

Minnesota’s strength of schedule has also come into play, as most of the Vikings’ opponents have stumbled all season. Vikings’ opponents thus far have a combined record of 16–25, but that’s about to change.

The Vikings have the toughest remaining schedule in the NFL, based on teams’ records this season of 41–30–1. Only three remaining opponents have losing records, and Minnesota won’t face them until Week 12 or later.

A four-game gauntlet starts Sunday with the Detroit Lions (4–2), a key NFC North game in the Motor City. The Vikings then face the Buffalo Bills (5–1), Green Bay Packers (4–3), and the 49ers (6–1) before the schedule eases up slightly.

That shift in difficulty is massive for a Vikings team that needed a major in-game turnaround against the Packers in Week 1. Minnesota lost Murray to a concussion, and the Vikings fell behind 22–10 during the third quarter.

Vikings backup quarterback Carson Wentz led a rally to a 39–22 victory.

That second game has characterized the Vikings’ young season: relying on an elite defense that has given up only 12.3 points per game, best in the league. Minnesota has allowed 155 yards passing per game for second-best in the league, and 97.8 yards rushing per game, which ranks 10th.

Opponents haven’t been able to score on the Vikings in the fourth quarter in particular, with just three points allowed in the first six games. The Vikings haven’t allowed more than 20 points since Week 1, and the defense has been opportunistic.

Minnesota has seven interceptions, including longtime safety Harrison Smith’s exclamation-point pick to end the game against the Colts on Sunday.

The Vikings have five forced fumbles and four recoveries. Minnesota’s pass rush has been ferocious, with 21 sacks and 54 quarterback hits. Their sack total puts them in a five-way tie for best in the league, and the hits total is third best.

Now the Vikings will test that prowess against Detroit’s high-powered offense featuring an efficient passer in quarterback Jared Goff and a dynamic running back in Jahmyr Gibbs.

It gets harder in the following weeks, with Bills quarterback Josh Allen, a perennial MVP candidate, and Packers quarterback Jordan Love, looking for payback after the Week 1 loss. San Francisco also has a loaded offense with quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey.

If any of those teams bring the Vikings back to earth, it will end a regular-season winning streak that goes back to last season. The Vikings have won 11 straight—last year’s squad won its last five games but missed the playoffs with a 9–8 record.

With 11 games left this season, the Vikings know a tough stretch could derail everything. Keeping the season on track starts in Detroit on Sunday.