Vikings' perfect 2026 start is about to get a whole lot more interesting

We're now a third of the way through this 2026 NFL regular season, and we're pretty sure it's safe to say that nobody predicted the Minnesota Vikings to be undefeated through these first six weeks.

And more than midway through Week 1, it didn't look like they would even win their first game, as they were down a dozen points to the Green Bay Packers before reeling off 29 straight points en route to a 39-22 victory.

And the Vikings have just rolled from there, taking victories over the Chicago Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins, and New Orleans Saints before their Week 6 bye.

Now, is that the most impressive list of opponents from an overall standpoint? No. But a 5-0 start is a 5-0 start, and Minnesota is undoubtedly thankful for it, as the slate gets a lot more difficult from here.

In fact, based on current win-loss records, the Vikings have the toughest remaining strength of schedule in the entire league over the final 12 weeks. Here's how things shake out for the Purple & Gold.

• Week 7: vs. Indianapolis Colts
• Week 8: at Detroit Lions
• Week 9: vs. Buffalo Bills (Monday Night Football)
• Week 10: at Green Bay Packers
• Week 11: vs. San Francisco 49ers (Sunday Night Football)
• Week 12: vs. Atlanta Falcons
• Week 13: vs. Carolina Panthers
• Week 14: at New England Patriots (Thursday Night Football)
• Week 15: vs. Detroit Lions (Sunday Night Football)
• Week 16: vs. Washington Commanders
• Week 17: at New York Jets
• Week 18: vs. Chicago Bears

8 of Vikings' final 12 games come against teams currently over .500

Here's a quick look at the remaining strength of schedule for all 32 teams over the final two-thirds of the 2026 regular season.

As you can see, the Vikings' remaining opponents have a combined winning percentage of .572, with one of the big reasons for that being that every single team in the NFC North owns a winning record at this point.

Minnesota leads the division, of course, at 5-0, but the Packers and Bears are both 4-2 (Green Bay owns the head-to-head tiebreaker there), while the Detroit Lions sit in last place at 3-2.

Of the Vikings' remaining 12 games, eight are against teams currently over .500.

Obviously, four of those are within the division, as they still have Detroit twice in Weeks 8 and 15, the rematch with Green Bay at Lambeau Field in Week 10, and the rematch with Chicago at home to close out the regular season in Week 18.

Beyond those, Minnesota also gets the Buffalo Bills (5-1) in Week 9, the currently undefeated San Francisco 49ers (6-0) in Week 11, the NFC South-leading Carolina Panthers (3-2) in Week 13, and the New England Patriots (4-2) in Week 14.

As for the contests against those not currently over .500, the Vikings have the Indianapolis Colts (2-4) this Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons (2-4) in Week 12, the Washington Commanders (1-4-1) in Week 16, and the New York Jets (2-4) in Week 17.

Naturally, Kevin O'Connell & Co. want to win all 12 of these games, but that's just not going to happen. But some of the beauty of this 5-0 start is that even if the Vikings go just 6-6, they still finish at 11-6 for the year, which one would assume will be good enough to get them back to the postseason.

If they can win two-thirds of these games over the final two-thirds of the season, a 13-4 finish likely wins them the division.

And what we haven't mentioned yet, although we're sure you noticed, is that every other team in the NFC North has it tough over the next few months as well, as the Bears are tied for fourth on the list above, with the Lions ranking sixth and the Packers seventh. So, there's some silver lining there.

Only time will tell how this all plays out, but the Vikings are rolling and, as mentioned, will look to continue their undefeated start on Sunday, as they welcome the Colts to U.S. Bank Stadium.

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