For the first time since 2016, the Minnesota Vikings are the last team in the NFL with an undefeated record following the results of Sunday's Week 7 games.
Entering Week 7, the Vikings, Kansas City Chiefs, and San Francisco 49ers had won all of their matchups so far this year. But by the end of Sunday, Minnesota was the only team without a loss on its 2026 record.
The Vikings, of course, improved to 6-0 this season with a win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, while the 49ers suffered a 29-20 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, and the Chiefs got stomped by 17 points in a primetime matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.
What happened the last time the Vikings were the last unbeaten team in the NFL?
For those who are unaware, this is not the first time that Minnesota has emerged as the last team in the league without a loss during a season. With Sunday's results, the Vikings have now been the final unbeaten team in the NFL seven times.
Most recently, Minnesota was the last unbeaten team in the league in 2016 until they lost a Week 7 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles. And not only did the Vikings lose that contest, but they also wound up losing eight of their final 11 games that year, which resulted in them missing the playoffs.
Oddly enough, that 2016 Minnesota team is the last example of a team missing the playoffs after beginning the season as the last undefeated team in the NFL.
Since then, every team that has finished as the last unbeaten team in the league in each season has gone on to make the playoffs later that year. However, none of them went on to get a win in the Super Bowl.
One has to go all the way back to 2006, when Peyton Manning and the Colts were able to win the Super Bowl after being the final undefeated team in the NFL in the same season.
Specifically, when it comes to the six previous times that the Vikings have been the final unbeaten team in the league, they've missed the playoffs once (2016), made it to the Super Bowl twice (1973 and 1976), played in the conference championship three times (2000, 1976, and 1973), and made the postseason five times.
Here's to hoping Minnesota's current team doesn't do its best impression of the 2016 squad, and they find a way to make the playoffs this season instead.
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