Vikings Power Rankings: Minnesota dips after Week 11 disappointment

Vikings power rankings heading into Week 12

Last week’s power rankings found the Vikings to be a team that was in the middle of the pack in the NFL. The team looked like they were finally putting everything together and starting to make a move toward relevancy this season. But now their potential seems even more confusing.

But where will the experts decide where to put the Vikings after their disappointing loss? Let’s take a look at the experts’ thoughts about the team and where they placed the purple and gold heading into Week 12.

Bleacher Report

19th (↓1)

• “Many of the same issues that plagued the Vikings during the team’s 1-5 start manifested again in a three-point loss.” – B/R NFL Staff

USA Today Sports

21st (↓3)

• “Decent chance WR Justin Jefferson can become sixth Minnesota player named offensive rookie of the year during the Super Bowl era, which would be most of any franchise.”‘ – USA Today’s Nate Davis

ESPN

19th (no change)

• “What they’re thankful for: LBs Eric Wilson and Eric Kendricks” – ESPN’s Courtney Cronin

Sports Illustrated

16th (↑1)

• “The Vikings had virtually no margin for error if they were going to make the playoffs, and the home loss to Dallas likely does them in.” – Gary Grambling

Sporting News

19th (↓1)

• “It’s such a waste, given what Dalvin Cook, Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson are all doing offensively.” – Sporting News’ Vinnie Iyer

NFL.com

16th (no change)

• “On Sunday against the Cowboys, Kirk Cousins played his best game of the season.”  – NFL.com’s Dan Hanzus

Yahoo Sports

18th (↓2)

• “That’s just the fifth time in NFL history a quarterback has posted a rating of at least 140 with 30 pass attempts and his team lost.” – Yahoo Sports’ Frank Schwab

Pro Football Network

18th (no change)

• “This looks like a terrible loss against the Cowboys, but Dallas played a very good game.” – Pro Football Network’s Matt Williamson

ProFootballTalk

18th (↓2)

• “It was fun while it lasted.” – ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio

CBS Sports

16th (no change)

• “The defense let them down in a big way.” – CBS Sports’ Pete Prisco

When looking at the average placement of the Vikings among all the experts, it comes to an even 18. That is down 0.8 from last week’s average of 17.2, meaning the experts don’t weigh this loss too heavily against what Minnesota has done this season.

Interestingly enough, there is a three-way tie for the most common place to find the Vikings among these power rankings. Three experts each have Minnesota as 16, 18, or 19 and the only outlier from those is one ranking at 21. Last week, that most common spot was at 18.

Finally, the range fans can find the Vikings in these power rankings grew by 50 percent. Previously, it was a four-spot range from 16 to 19. But this week, it grew to a six-spot range to prove the experts are less honed-in on a common opinion of the team.