Minnesota Vikings Power Rankings Roundup: Week 13

As we know, the Minnesota Vikings didn’t play this past week, so I’m quite interested to see exactly what happened to them in this week’s Power Rankings. As we’ve said in the past, when you get into the top ten of these rankings (where the Vikings firmly find themselves), what you do doesn’t seem to matter quite as much as what the teams above you do as to whether or not you move around. . .particularly if you’re looking to move up. Will the Vikings get a bump going into this week’s contest in Seattle?

Well, let’s find out, since it’s time for this week’s Minnesota Vikings Power Rankings Roundup!

Associated Press: #6 (Last week: #7)

No Vikings specific commentary from the AP this week.

Dan Hanzus, NFL.com: #6 (Last week: #7)

The Vikings hit the bye at 8-3, including a 6-1 mark since Week 5. They’re legit Super Bowl contenders in the NFC, and their offense has been a key part of their success, no matter what all the Kirk Cousins Haters at your Thanksgiving dinner table tell you. Dalvin Cook’s admission into The Superstar Club has unlocked hidden potential in Minnesota’s attack, but Cousins has absolutely held up his end of the bargain in the second season of his three-year pact with the Vikings. With Cook gashing defenses on the ground and Cousins carving up secondaries through the air, the Vikings have piled up 88 “big plays” -- which NFL Media Research constitutes as runs of 10-plus yards or passes of 20-plus yards -- this season. The Vikes led the NFL in that category entering Week 12.

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: #7 (Last week: #6)

They come off their bye with a tough road game at Seattle. It really is a big game for Kirk Cousins.

Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: #7 (Last week: #7)

The Vikings enjoyed their bye with the Packers falling into a virtual tie with them. Now they have to keep up their strong offensive play around red-hot Kirk Cousins right away with Russell Wilson and the Seahawks next on the schedule.

MMQB, Sports Illustrated: #7 (Last week: #7)

And without having to lift a finger, the Vikings are back in the mix for a first-round bye. They can improve their Plan B path through the playoffs with a win over the wild card-leading Seahawks on Monday night.

Frank Schwab, Yahoo! Sports: #6 (Last week: #7)

The Vikings got to rest, and watch the Packers get blown out to give them a share of first place in the NFC North. That’s a heck of a bye week.

Bleacher Report: #7 (Last week: #8)

In most seasons, the 8-3 Minnesota Vikings would be considered among the leading Super Bowl contenders in the conference. But in a year where the NFC is positively stacked with good teams, the Vikings entered Week 12 as the No. 6 seed if the playoffs began today.

There are reasons for a measure of concern with the Vikes. Minnesota had to stage a furious rally last week to defeat a flawed Denver Broncos team, and the Vikings have struggled away from U.S. Bank Stadium—all three losses came outdoors.

However, they also have the makings of a formidable squad. Quarterback Kirk Cousins is playing well. The cadre of skill-position talent at his disposal is deep and talented. The defense has talent at all three levels.

Minnesota has little margin for error given its road struggles. It’s much easier to imagine this team makes a deep playoff run if it can catch the Packers in the NFC North than if it has to travel on Wild Card Weekend.

USA Today: #9 (Last week: #8)

They’ll be hard pressed to cough up two-game lead for final NFC playoff berth, but two West Coast trips in next three weeks don’t help.

Mike Florio, Pro Football Talk: #6 (Last week: #7)

A win in Seattle, as unlikely as it would be, would propel the Vikings into the bye-week conversation.

ESPN: #6 (Last week: #7)

What they’re thankful for: A revamped offense.

Mike Zimmer waxes poetic anytime Gary Kubiak is mentioned. Kirk Cousins has been lights out since Week 5, and the Vikings’ potent rushing attack is a threat no matter who they’re playing. The overhaul of Minnesota’s offense from a year ago has the Vikings with the league’s eighth-best unit, putting up numbers that rival some of the NFL’s top playoff contenders. The offense has carried its weight (and bailed out the defense too) through the majority of the season, which is a welcome departure from years past.

Well, there was a slight shift for the Vikings in the rankings, even though they did not take the field this past week. Of the ten outlets that we use to put together our Roundup, six of them moved the Vikings up this past week, with each of them bumping the purple up by one spot. Two sets of rankings held them steady at where they were prior to the bye, and two places. . .for whatever reason. . .saw fit to move the Vikings down a spot despite them not playing.

Overall, the Vikings’ average ranking climbed almost half a spot during their bye week. The were at an average of 7.1 last week, and this week they’re at an average of 6.7.

Here is your graphic representation of our trends, and you may click to embiggen things of you need to.

If the Vikings want to make a significant move upwards, they can do so with a win on Monday Night Football, as the Seattle Seahawks are one of the few teams that is universally ranked ahead of the Vikings in Power Rankings across the internet.

Will the Vikings be able to make that jump? It will be pretty awesome if they can. At this time next week, we’ll be able to find out.