7 biggest takeaways from the Vikings win over the Packers in Week 1

Minnesota is trying to contend right now

Most figured that the Vikings at least had a chance to squeak out a win over the Packers on Sunday, but few anticipated that Minnesota would leave the field with a 16-point victory over a team that’s won at least 13 games in each of the last three seasons.

This didn’t feel like some fluke win for the Vikings. Minnesota came prepared on Sunday and they knew exactly how to attack last year’s No. 1 seed in the NFC.

If the Vikings are able to beat a team like Green Bay by double-digits, what can they do against some of the other top contenders in the NFC this year? At the very least, Minnesota proved on Sunday that they can probably hang with just about any team in the league this year if most of their roster is able to remain healthy.

New Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah mentioned during the offseason that the team was going through a competitive rebuild. With this in mind, most assumed the expectations in Minnesota this year didn’t include contending for a championship. But Sunday’s win said otherwise.

After just one game, chances still seem low that the Vikings will be among the top teams that contend for a spot in the Super Bowl this season. At the same time, it seems like Minnesota is still going to step on the field each week this year as if they are among the top contenders in the NFC, whether it’s true or not.